320 State Street
by P-Artsypants
Summary: Gobber's Goods. A Hardware Store that was rumored to have everything you needed. She thought she only needed a job. Turns out, she needed a lot more than that. (A Modern AU no one asked for)
1. April 14 2016

I don't usually post new stories when I don't have a couple of chapters done, but I'm really excited about this one. I started planning it way back around Infernal Responsibility in 2015. Since then, the story has changed in little ways and I went through a little Miraculous Ladybug and Kingdom Hearts phase. But now I'm back and ready to rock! I hope you all enjoy my Modern AU.

—

Based on actual events.

—

"Can I help you?"

Astrid had entered the hardware store on a whim. 320 State Street, Gobber's Goods, run by a master Jack-of-All-Trades. Located in the Times Square of the little twin city area, but looked like you'd find it out in the middle of nowhere. Cement statues and garden decorations stood watch outside. All other trendy, organized, high trafficked stores had come and gone, but Gobber's Goods had remained steadfast and unchanging. Well, at some point, someone re-painted the sign. It was rumored the store carried everything you could think of, despite it's small size. And if you went in, you'd find exactly what you'd need.

Well, Astrid needed a job, and the sign in the window advertised there was one available.

The young cashier drummed his fingers on the side of the register. His extremely green eyes were only magnified by his club master glasses. He might have been really attractive, if his nose wasn't so huge. His russet hair laid lightly tussled on his head as he continued to smile at her.

"Uh…" she distractedly looked around the shop, taking in the absolute chaos and clutter.

"It's…a little crazy in here," he admitted, "is there something you need? There's some method to Gobber's madness, I'm sure we could figure it out."

Crazy was an understatement. Only a little sunlight spilled in from the poster covered windows, showing dust floating in the air. The fattest cat she'd ever seen was laying on a shelf, enjoying the sun. Vintage ads and signs hung from the ceiling. There was only a few lights, and they flickered here and there. The wooden floorboards creaked with each step. A refrigerator with glass bottle pop sat by the door, while a fridge of bait next to it. Shelves filled with unmarked, rusted cans and dusty tools lined aisle after aisle. Behind the cashier, the wall was lined with hundreds of little drawers. The store was bigger inside than first glance.

Astrid was very much regretting her decision to apply, but her desperation spoke for her as she stated, "application."

The cashier smiled wider, showing his braces. "We don't have applications, but my boss is here and he can interview you now, if you have time."

"Uh, yeah, that'll work."

"Cool, let me just…uh…" he reached over, grabbed a radio, and hit a button. "Hey Boss, there's a girl here interested in the job."

There was silence for a long time before a voice spoke back. "Is she cute?"

The cashier blushed. "Gobber!"

"I'll be out in a sec! Be cordial!"

The cashier rolled his eyes and dropped the radio to the glass counter. "So…you must be pretty desperate to apply here."

She grimaced. "I mean, you aren't wrong, but is it that bad?"

"No, not at all." He leaned forward on his elbows, "I love working here. It's just…everyone assumes its awful because the place is a dump."

"It's…got character." She supplied. A light blinked out. "This is actually the first time I've been in here. It's not often I have to buy…repair stuff," then she whispered, "I usually go to Ace Hardware."

The cashier snickered. "Don't say that too loud around Gobber, he'll tell you all about their terrible merchandise."

Astrid looked at the shelves of dilapidated junk. "Sounds pretty hypocritical."

"You should have seen the place before I got here."

"Oh?"

Before he could continue his story, a goat looking man hobbled out. His stomach hanging out over his belt and his mustache dangling down by his nipples. He stood on a wooden peg leg while his hook hand scratched his fat red nose. "So! You want a job, ey?"

"I regret everything." She muttered.

"Let's talk." From behind the counter, he pulled out two high chairs and beckoned her to sit. The cashier went to make himself busy, but the owner steadied him. "You get just as much in a say in this hire as I do, since you'll be training her."

The boy couldn't argue with that.

"So, Lass, why do you wanna work fer me?"

He spoke with an accent. _Irish?_ She couldn't tell. "Well, to be honest, Mr.—..."

"Gobber. Owner of this fine establishment."

"Uh, Gobber, right. Well, to be honest, I just need a job, and my friend recommended it."

"Who's yer friend?"

"Gladius Thorenson, you employ her brother Mortice?"

"Tuff! Ah, good lad." He nodded. "Alright, I only have a few questions."

"Shoot."

"Do you have any psychotic tendencies?"

"What? No!"

"Disabilities?"

"No."

"Drug addiction?"

"Nope."

"Criminal history?"

"No sir."

"Well, then why on earth do you want a job _here_?"

She sighed. "I...I got fired from Bath and Body Works a few weeks ago, because of a cruel customer. I am desperate for a job, and no one is hiring."

"Ah, I see...shopaholic then?"

She actually laughed. "No, it's my dad."

"Ah, I see! You're hired."

"Wait? Really?! Don't you need to see any references? Blood tests? Skill sets? To consider the candidates over two weeks before you call me back?"

"You know Tuff and his sister, Ruff. That's good enough for me. Besides, there were no other candidates, and that sign has been in the window for two weeks. When can you start?"

 _Right now_ , She thought earnestly. "As soon as you need me to?"

"Great! Let's talk about your schedule Miss…Oh good grief! I was so excited to get a pretty girl on my team I forgot to ask your name!"

"I'm Astrid, Astrid Hofferson."

"Astrid! What a lovely name!" He turned to the cashier. "Don't you think so Hiccup?"

In turn, Hiccup blushed, "What are you trying to do, flirt for me?"

"If you think so, then sure!"

The boy rolled his eyes and looked at her, "I'm Henry Haddock, but everyone calls me Hiccup."

"…why?" She asked, hesitantly.

"Tuff likes to come up with nicknames. I just kind of roll with it."

She nodded in understanding.

"Well," Gobber began, with a schedule in hand. "What I like to do, is have a cashier, a stocker, and a delivery driver working at the same time, so if something happens, there's at least one person in the store. Depending on when you can work, I'll figure out the team. So, when can you work?"

"I have class Monday through Wednesday until 12. Thursdays and Fridays I have clinicals at the hospital until 4. Weekends are totally free."

"Med student?"

"Nursing," She smiled.

He looked at his hand, "We could definitely use a nursing student."

Astrid just stared wide-eyed.

"I'm just kidding, I lost this _years_ ago. Reached into a wood chipper to get a rock that fell in, and when I pulled it out…" He made a grinding sound.

She shuttered heavily. "What about your leg?"

"Landmine in Vietnam."

She hummed in understanding.

"How many hours are you thinking?"

"As many as I can get."

"Great! So let's see…" He studied the sheet. "Why don't you pick out a soda from the fridge while I figure this out? My treat!"

"Oh, thanks!" She smiled. "What's good?"

Hiccup replied back, "Might I suggest 'Rat Bastard' Root Beer? It's pungent with a hint of Vanilla."

She found the bottle and allowed him to pop the cap with an opener. One swig and she was pleased, "pungent, with a hint of vanilla. You weren't kidding."

Gobber looked up. "I'll have you work 2 to close Monday through Wednesday with Hiccup. We close at 8. Thursdays and I can have you on from 5-close. And then Saturday morning—no wait, evening, 12-5, we close early on Saturdays. Mildew works mornings and I don't want you working with him."

" _Mildew?_ Seriously, what's up with these names?"

Gobber continued. "We're closed on Sundays and most Holidays. But that gives you about thirty hours. Think you can handle it?"

"I was actually hoping for more…but if that's all you have, I'll take it. It's minimum wage, right?"

"For a little while, but if you show up on time, are pleasant and do something, there's a chance for a 50 cent raise in the first month, and then once a year after that."

Hiccup added, "Everyone but Tuff has gotten a raise. It's not that hard."

She chuckled, "Knowing Tuff, he's close to being fired."

" _One day_ …" Gobber lamented. "Well, I think I've overloaded your brain for today. So, tomorrow is Wednesday. Are you ready to start?"

"2 O'clock? I'll be here!"

"I'll be on a job until 5, so Hiccup here will take care of you."

She grinned, "I'm looking forward to it."

"Oh!" The man snapped, "there's one more important thing I forgot."

"Oh yeah, the tax forms." Astrid confirmed.

Hiccup snickered, "Tax forms…"

"What? No no, we'll do that later." Gobber assured, "more importantly, we need to figure out what role you would have in viking society."

Her brows furrowed, "Uh… _what?_ "

"It's simple, in order for us to get along, we must all have a role. You'll have conflicts if there's two Blacksmiths or Shepards."

"I thought I was a cashier? Or a stocker?"

Hiccup nodded, "you're a cashier, this is just a…store management thing."

"Oh."

"Now I," declared the boss, "am obviously…what?"

"Uh…the chief?"

"No! The Blacksmith! Geez…"

"Okay, you fix stuff, so you're the Blacksmith, I got it."

"Now, Mildew is the farmer."

"…because he's a stocker?" She confirmed.

Gobber paused, "Well, yeah, that makes sense, but he also has 18 cats."

She threw up a little bit in her mouth.

"Bucket and Mulch are the fishermen."

"Okay, hold on, I thought you _just said_ there couldn't be duplicates."

Hiccup answered, "Those two have to work together…Bucket needs help. He can't drive, but he's really strong. So he's great for deliveries."

"Oh, I see. Continue."

"Tuff is the village idiot."

"Makes sense."

"And Hiccup here is the Prince."

Hiccup pinched the bridge of his nose, "There's no princes in Norse Mythology."

"Well, he's the closest thing to Chief we have, but he's not the Chief. While I do the hiring, firing, schedules…and all that stuff, Hiccup manages the store."

Astrid looked around, "… so I see…"

Hiccup looked at her flatly, "I don't get a lot of time to organize if I'm always watching the register."

"Which is why we hired you, lass!" Gobber intervened.

"Oh, okay. Yeah, that makes sense." She processed all that had been said. " _Is_ there a Chief?"

"Uh…" Gobber scrunched up his nose. "My business partner Alvin is probably the Chief, though it's unspoken."

Hiccup frowned. "If you're lucky, you'll never have to meet him." Then he whispered, "he's got anger issues."

"But he knows how to balance the books! He's the shrewdest man to walk this earth, but I'll be damned if he didn't keep us in business!"

"Shieldmaiden." Astrid stated.

" **What?** " The men asked in unison.

"Well, someone has to be the warrior, the one that rallies the moral of the team, the one to protect the village…or else you're subject to invasion. So, I want to be the Shieldmaiden."

"I was thinking you'd say healer, you know…nursing student?" Hiccup shrugged.

She smiled and replied, "Who said I can't be both?"

Gobber snickered at Hiccup. "I like her."

"So, Shieldmaiden," began Hiccup, "You still want to work here, even with all this craziness?"

She looked fondly at the clutter and chaos and answered, resolute, "I think crazy is just the thing I could use right now."

—

Gladius, known respectfully by her peers as Ruff, sat at a high table in the far back of the room.

"D'ya get it?"

"Yeah," Astrid said, taking her seat, a near empty bottle of root beer and soup in hand. "Thanks for the idea. You should have seen the guy's face when I asked."

"Who? The cute freckled one with the Ray Bans?"

"Yeah, sure. Anyways, the look was of sheer delight. "

"Oh, of course. He wasn't expecting to get a 10 like you."

"What?"

"Well, most of the workers there have some sort of problem, i.e. _disability_."

"And your brother?"

"He's just stupid!" Ruff laughed. "So, you're still going in tomorrow?"

"I got hired on the spot! I've applied at every establishment on this side of the river and no one called me back. And I got thirty hours with the promise of a raise. I can't imagine anything better."

"Thanks Michigan, for the highest unemployment rate..." Ruff muttered snidely.

"I just hope the work is worth the pay. Remember at B&B when they made me manager but continued paying minimum wage?" She muttered.

"You have the worst luck, girlfriend. The worst."

"Debatably. I have a house—"

"That you share with a psycho."

"I have a job."

" _Now_."

"And I'm going to school."

"For the worst reason…"

"I'm in the top ten percent. I'm not going to ask for more."

"Maybe you'll get to work with Mr. Hottie Cashier." Ruff wiggled her eyebrows.

Astrid glanced at her, but then looked back to her soup. "He seems nice, but you can't judge a person on his looks."

"I thought you liked the nerdy looking guys."

"Forget it Ruff, not interested."

"Who knows? And come on! You should ask him out!"

"Drop it Ruff."

"Give me one good reason!"

Astrid glanced up and stated outright. "Scott."

Ruff deflated. "That's a reason. Sometimes I forget you even have a boyfriend."

Astrid ignored her friend and finished her soup.

"I mean, you never talk about him. I never see him, the only evidence that he exists is—..."

"Let's talk about something else?"

"Like what? All you ever talk about nowadays is your crazy roommate and your extremely exhausting classes."

"I'm busy, okay? How about you? Weren't you dating that one guy? Mr. Bulging Pecs?"

Ruff got a dreamy look on her face. "Erik Erikson…the man of my dreams."

"So…that's a yes then?"

"I might have fibbed a little about our whole dating thing."

Astrid pushed her bowl out of the way and leaned in on her elbows. "What did you do?"

"I _may_ have spied on him from a tree, and he _may_ have caught me, and he _may_ have filed for a restraining order."

The attention of the every patron in the cafe was on Astrid in a second as she started screaming with laughter. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" She gasped out between guffaws.

"It's not that funny."

"You said that _I_ had bad luck!"

"Well, he hasn't gotten the restraining order yet, so I'm going to apologize and then we're going to fall in love and have beautiful babies."

"Ruff, you a your brother lead the craziest lives ever."

"Interesting. Most interesting lives."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." Astrid downed the rest of her soda. "Hey, I have to get going, I have a Psychology paper I have to finish."

"Gross."

"You know, I wish I had gotten this job sooner, since we're studying the traumatic effects of amputation on the human body, and my new boss is a double amputee."

"Blah blah science, blah blah health."

Astrid narrowed her eyes as she put on her coat. "Remind me why we're friends."

"Like you said, I lead an interesting life."

"Well," She picked up her empty bowl. "Soon, I'll have other stories to tell you, instead of medical horrors."

Ruff rolled her eyes, "hurray, more bad customer stories."


	2. April 15 2016

Snotlout is SUPER out of character in this fic. Sorry guys.

* * *

"Wait a second, these lightbulbs are on sale!"

It was 1:45. Astrid walked into her new job, head held high. Hiccup was at the counter, his face slightly flushed as a tall black man loomed over him with a receipt.

"…they didn't ring up on sale, did you grab the right ones?"

"Yeah! You should know your own ads!"

Wordlessly, Hiccup grabbed a binder from under the counter and flipped through it easily. "Oh, I see. They're on sale if you buy 'Hansen's' brand drain cleaner with them."

"Oh."

"…would you like to buy some drain cleaner?"

"Will I get these on sale then?"

"Yes."

"Then I'll do that." And he went back into the store.

"Hey," Astrid greeted.

"Oh, hi!" He grinned, his braces glittering in the florescent light. "You're here early."

"I got out of class early, and had nothing better to do."

The customer returned. "Does it matter what size I get?"

"Uh," Hiccup glanced at the ad again. "It says 32 oz. So, the smaller one."

"Okay," and again, he disappeared.

"Is this okay to wear? Or do you have a uniform?" She asked, gesturing to herself. She wore a red blouse with a gray mini skirt over blue, floral print leggings and white sneakers.

"Yeah, you look cute!" He colored. "Pretty! Nice! You look nice…there's no uniform." Then he cleared his throat and regained his composure. "But you do get a name tag."

She smirked.

The man returned with his drain cleaner.

"So," Hiccup continued, "I'll start training you in a second, but why don't you come back here and watch this?"

"Okay."

The customer finished his purchase, buying two cases of lightbulbs and got 2 dollars off as a discount, but then spent 4 bucks on the drain cleaner. So in the end, he paid more for something he didn't need.

"Thanks for coming in, and have a nice day!"

The bell on top of the door jingled as he left.

"I saw that going really badly, like, nightmares for weeks badly, but you handled it pretty well." Astrid admitted.

"Our customers, ninety percent of time, are really cool and know what their doing, usually they're regulars. But…sometimes we get in some really weird people? How-How good are your customer service skills?" He asked, nervously.

She smiled, pleasantly. "I've been around the block. You just show me how to use the register and what my duties are."

He sighed in relief. "Good! Okay, so…" He patted the side of the register, which looked like a computer purchased from Goodwill for $20. "Everything is super easy. When a customer brings up an item, it will have a number on it written with sharpie. All you have to do is type that number into this little box," he pointed to the bottom of the screen, "and then click enter."

Astrid frowned. "…so you guys don't have a barcode reader?"

"Nope." He grinned, "and it used to be infinitely worse." He pulled out another binder from under the counter. This one was much thicker, with yellowed pages and worn corners. Inside, each page had about fifty rows, with dozens of numbers. "This is what we used to use. And to some extent we still do. If you type something in and it doesn't come up, you can look in here or radio me or Gobber."

"Seems simple." She shrugged.

"On Saturday nights, Gobber and I stay and enter promotions and sales, so they should automatically apply once you type in a number."

"Nice! Is this a new thing too?"

"You don't even want to know how complicated it was before. We've had this register for about a year now, but before that, we had to use that super antique one." He pointed to a machine at the other end of the counter that looked like a typewriter. "The only reason Alvin upgraded was because, well A, it stopped working, and B, it wasn't compatible with the credit card machine." He pointed to the little key pad attached to the front of the register. "And we are chip card ready."

Astrid laughed, "you guys have a chip reader?!"

"Crazy huh? And yes, you will have to correct everyone when they swipe their card, cause people can't read the twenty signs we have."

"Oh yeah, I know the struggle of _The Chip_."

He laughed along with her. "Once you ring up all the items, press the + key, and then wait for payment."

"Cool."

"Easy peasy?"

"Easy peasy."

Hiccup showed her some other little details before the door rang.

"Hello!" Hiccup greeted, turning to the interloper. "Oh, Tuff. Welcome back. You're just in time. I'm training Astrid."

"Who?" Asked the delivery driver, his pinky in his ear. "Oh! You mean Rat Bastard!"

" **What?** " Bit Astrid.

Tuff leaned on the counter, his long, matted blonde hair falling over his shoulder. "Yeah, Rat Bastard. That was the first thing you purchased! That's how I come up with everyone's nickname."

She narrowed her eyes, "And Hiccup?"

"He was here before me, had to come up with something else."

"I'll pass on the name."

"Too late! I already told everyone to call you that. Right Hiccup?"

He shrugged, "I missed that memo…and I don't think having a swear word as a nickname is a good idea."

Tuff laughed, "Oh boy, have I got a thing to tell you about the name 'Dick'."

Astrid interrupted, "my nickname in high school was 'Hoff', you can call me that, if you must."

"Hoff! I like it!"

"Now that you're here," Hiccup added. "You can watch the register while I give Astrid a brief tour."

"'kay." He pulled his phone out.

Astrid leaned closer and whispered, "are you going to let him do that?"

"Trust me, it's better that way." Then he headed towards a door in the back, "I'll show you the stockroom/breakroom."

—

If she thought the front part of the store was bad, then the back was like walking into the aftermath of a hurricane. "How do you guys find anything back here?" She asked honestly, if not a little amazed.

"We don't." He shrugged. "Which again, is why we hired you, so I can start to organize this. It took me long enough to copy that book down digitally so it was easier to purchase something."

"You did that?"

"Yep! Gobber doesn't know anything about computers."

"Oh boy."

He gestured to the various shelves crammed with odds and ends. "You don't have to worry about this stuff. But, as a cashier, you will need to keep the candy, pop, and ice cream stocked." He pointed to the side wall where a bookshelf housed the product. A walk in freezer was built into the wall, and it looked ancient.

"We sell ice cream?"

"Yeah, it's one of those chest freezers with Häagen-Dazs in it. It's next to the pop."

"Must have missed it. Do we sell a lot?"

"In the summer. Gobber eats most of it the rest of year."

She chuckled.

"And this isn't _actually_ one of your duties, but you know all the little drawers behind the register?"

"Yeah?"

"They have nuts, bolts, screws…all that kind of stuff. They're all labelled, but I'll give you a box of various fasteners and then slowly through the day, when no one is here, if you could put them away, that would really help me out."

"Oh sure, that's no problem. It beats standing around waiting."

"And you'll be able to help customers more when someone asks for something."

She nodded in understanding.

"Okay, so over here is the break room." He guided her an industrial sized shelving unit. While the top housed all sorts of merchandise, the bottom most rung held two couches, a mini fridge, and a microwave.

"Is this safe?" She asked skeptically.

"Probably." He shrugged. "If it hasn't fallen yet, it's probably okay, just don't climb on the top and start jumping.

"OSHA probably doesn't come here very often…huh?"

"What's OSHA?"

"Something something safety and health administration."

"Oh…yeah no. I'm surprised this place is still in business."

"Do I have a locker?"

"Sort of…" He stated, beckoning her to a closet in the corner. "We each have a designated coat hook and cubby underneath. You can thank me for that. This room just used to be full of Gobber's dirty clothes."

"Ew."

"So I put my foot down and packed it all up and threw it away. To this day I don't think he's noticed."

"So, you really are the Prince."

He rolled his eyes, "if anything I'd be the Jarl or something."

"So…am I going to have to do those dumb training videos? You know, the ones where they tell you not to play football in the store?"

"Astrid, we have a common sense policy. It if seems like something you shouldn't do. Don't do it."

"Fair enough."

"Let me clarify, if it seems like something Tuff would enjoy, don't do it."

She laughed. "Okay, that makes perfect sense."

"And, before I forget…" He gestured with his hand to follow and went to an office filled with papers. "Wait here, I don't want you to get caught in an avalanche." He dug around for a little bit. "Now where did he—dang it I just had it yesterday…" He threw a stack of papers on the floor. "Don't need those anymore…AH HA!" And he pulled out a little name tag. "Here you go!"

She glanced at it. "You spelled my name wrong."

"Oh what?!" He snatched it back.

"Just kidding," she cheeked.

"I've got my eye on you, cashier."

She grinned.

Then he put his hand on a door next to the office. "This is the bathroom. Do not use it."

"What, is it broken or something?"

He shook his head, "oh it works just fine, but every time I try to clean it, I just end up throwing up instead, and I _don't_ have a weak stomach."

She grimaced.

"If you have to use the bathroom, Fishlegs will let you use the one at the computer store. And trust me, it's the best way to go." He started back to the front of the shop. "Alright, that's about it. For the first couple of days, I'll hang out with you at the register, so you have someone to ask questions too."

"It seems pretty easy."

"And, it's only April. We'll get busier next month."

He opened the door to find Tuff standing on the glass counter, balancing a hammer on his forehead.

"Tuff!"

The hammer fell to the ground with a clang. "Oh dude, you made me lose my concentration."

—

'Not too busy' was an understatement. An hour had passed without a customer. Hiccup and Astrid both sat behind the counter with superficial conversation while Tuff continued to balance the hammer.

"So…nursing, huh?"

"Yeah, second semester."

"Where at?"

"LMC."

"Oh hey! Me too!"

She furrowed her brow, "you're in nursing? I've never seen you."

"Oh…No no," he shook his head, "I mean I go to LMC, I'm in Engineering Technology…well, Industrial Design."

She blinked a couple times, "So…designing machines?"

"Yes, but I have a focus on prosthetics."

"Oh that's nice. Are you doing this for Gobber, or do you know someone with an amputation?"

"Uh…" he looked down and his feet.

Astrid followed his line of gaze to see his left leg, or lack of one, missing right below the knee. Instead, there was a stylish, twisted cage of steel running down his shin with a flat hook for a foot.

"Oh my god, I'm sorry. I didn't even notice!"

He simpered, "well, its better than you _overly_ noticing."

"I guess I just only saw you yesterday behind the counter…wow, I'm usually more perceptive than that."

He waved his hand, "don't even worry about it, Tuff didn't realize it until my last prototype got caught on the floor and popped off. He thought I broke my leg and the rest of it broke through the floorboards."

"In my defense," called Tuff, now balancing the hammer on his hand, "how often do you look at a man's shoes?"

"How fortunate for you," Astrid stated to Hiccup, "that boot is hideous."

"What? No it's not! I got it—them from Cabela's!"

"Cabela's?! That's a hunting store! How on earth are you going to get a girlfriend if you wear a hunting boot to work?"

He blushed. "Who said I didn't have a girlfriend?"

"Oh…do you?"

"…No, but I could if I wanted to! I just…haven't found the right girl yet."

"Well, how do you know if she's the right girl if you don't ask her out?"

He snippily replied, "ever heard of a thing called friendship?"

"Touche."

"What about you, Astrid? Do you have a boyfriend?"

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"Oh." He sounded ever so slightly disappointed.

"His name is Scott and he's—…" How to adequately describe Scott Loud, the man who currently held the title of 'boyfriend' in her life? Some things had changed in the last year, and in honesty, she wasn't quite sure she could say he was still the same, funny, sweet, pig-headed, boy she had known two years ago. In fact, she'd go as far to say—no, that wasn't polite to say out loud. Especially to a stranger, so she simply stated, "he's a good one."

He picked up on her hesitation immediately, but decidedly didn't comment.

Tuff became the source of entertainment as his balancing act became a juggling act. Astrid would have been nervous, if the merchandise around him had been breakable, but as it was…it was probably fine.

"So…" most of these conversations with her new co-worker started like that. She used to like silence, but with this guy, silence wasn't uncomfortable. Not yet. "How'd you lose it?"

"Hm?"

"Your leg. What happened?"

"Pygmies in Africa."

Tuff laughed, faltering with his juggling. "Don't count on the right answer Astrid, he doesn't like to talk about it!"

"I'm sorry," she blanched. "Curiosity killed the cat, right?"

The door rang.

"Hello!" Astrid greeted.

A young man was at the door. Maybe as tall as he was wide. His short blonde hair was tucked under his baseball cap as he held a backpack on his shoulder.

" **Hey Fishlegs.** " Both Hiccup and Tuff called.

"Hey guys," he responded coming fully into the shop. "And…Astrid? Astrid Hofferson?"

"That's me," she shrugged. "Wait, I know you…you're Jacob…Ingerman? Right?"

"Yep! We were partners in chemistry! It's been a while! What are you doing here? I thought you got some amazing scholarship and went to Harvard?"

"No way! Harvard is way too hard to get into!" She laughed, "I went to Yale."

Hiccup gaped at her. "You went to _Yale_? And you couldn't get a job anywhere?"

She shrugged, a solemn look ghosting over her face. "I only went one year. My scholarship ran out…among other things. So yeah, I've been back in the area for a year now. I'm in nursing."

"Whoa, bummer," Fishlegs offered.

"So what about you? I thought you were working at your Uncle's computer store?"

"I am! Hiccup and I carpool into town, since we live in the same neighborhood. We close at 6 though, so I come here and hang out."

"Oh my god, it's 6 o'clock already?" Astrid turned to look for a clock. There was one wedged in the space of a support beam by the ceiling.

"Time really flies when you're having fun, huh?" Tuff called back, then dropped one of his hammers. Then the rest fell with a clatter. "Oh geez!"

"Tuff, are you sure Gobber doesn't have any more deliveries for you?"

"Yep! Made all of them this morning in one trip. I had the truck today."

Astrid smiled to herself, "this is great." She hadn't really meant to say it out loud, but she didn't regret it.

"Huh?" Hiccup asked back.

"I've been in and out of jobs. Some retail, some food…and each time I never really connected with my co-workers. I don't know why. But…I really like it here. I know it's the first day and all…but I think an eclectic store out of the way was just what I needed."

Hiccup grinned, "Aw, you don't mind befriending a bunch of nerds?"

"And a pothead!" Called back Tuff.

"Oh man, Tuff, I thought we talked about this!"

"We did, my prince, but I promised to not smoke on Sundays before church, and before or during work. I am just, unfortunately, a slave to the good kush. I might be hopeless, but I'm not a liar."

"Hopeless is accurate." Hiccup shook his head.

—

The last two hours went well. Collectively, two boxes of screws were sorted and another dent was added to the hardwood floor. Those tax forms were finally filled out, though Astrid wondered if Gobber was actually going to use them.

After clocking out, Astrid bid adieu to her new friends and headed home.

Getting in her jeep, she checked her phone. Hiccup hadn't said it was prohibited during work, but old habits die hard. There was one message from Ruff.

Nothing from Scott.

She called him yesterday, but hadn't _really_ talked to him in days. And the last time wasn't under great circumstances. She tried again.

The dial tone rang in her ear, until finally, " _yeah?_ "

"Hey honey!" She sang, her day was really great, and she couldn't wait to tell him about it. "So I had my first day at work today."

" _What? First day?_ "

"Yeah, I tried to tell you yesterday, but you hung up on me."

" _Yeah, sorry. But this is a bad time. I'll talk to you later._ "

"You said that yesterday too."

" _I'm…busy._ "

This was getting old. "You're always busy. I'm your girlfriend! We should be communicating! I want to hear about your day!"

" _Later. Just…text me next time, okay?_ "

Her heart was sinking, "but I miss you."

" _I'll tell you what, we'll go out for dinner on Sunday night, okay?_ "

"You mean it this time?"

" _I promise._ "

She sighed. "Okay, it's a date. Love you."

The phone beeped. He hung up.

Astrid stared at the device like it had personally done her harm. Scott was notorious when it came to forgetting dates. Or ditching her at the last second. It had been like this for far too long.

She started her car. "I should just dump him." But then she would be all alone. And she kind of owed it to him to stick it out, at least until she paid him back.

And who knows how angry he'd get if she called it quits. She'd rather be forgotten, than be in a room with him angry.

Astrid drove home. Her jeep humming and whining all the way. "Come on girl, I just need you to keep holding out."

She parked off the street, and made her way to her crappy little two bedroom apartment. She could smell her roommate's candles from here. She undid the three locks on the door and walked inside. It was hardly dark outside, but every light in the apartment was on.

Couldn't be good for the electricity bill.

"Stormfly! Here girl!"

Her bird was quiet.

"Hey Alison?" She called to her roommate as she put her coat away.

The woman in question came out of her room, completely naked. Astrid was, unfortunately, used to this. "I put your bird in it's cage."

"When?"

"Noon."

"At _noon_? Did you make sure she had food and water before you did that?"

"I'm not your bird's keeper." And she ghosted back from whence she came.

Astrid hurried into her dark room where the cage sat in the corner. The pretty blue and yellow Macaw was huddled in the corner with it's eyes closed. "Stormfly," she whispered. "I'm home! Are you hungry?"

The bird puffed up slightly and squawked.

"Atta girl! There's my Stormfly!"

The Macaw hopped out of the cage and on to Astrid's arm.

"I'm sorry I had to leave you alone all day! I know it's no fun! But in a few days, we'll go see grandpa! Won't that be fun?"

" _Go see Grandpa! Go see Grandpa!_ "

Astrid smiled, "So…I had a weirdly great first day at work…"


	3. May 2 2016

This chapter is a bit longer. But we meet an important character.

—

"I need pizza." The man spoke with a heavy accent.

An interesting request for a hardware store, to be sure.

"Um…we don't sell pizza?" Astrid didn't think she had to explain that. Considering the cement statues in the front and the full shelf of paint right behind the man. "There's a pizzeria down the street."

"Ndio, pizza." He nodded. The man was very dark in complexion and wore a flat hat and a heavy coat, despite it being May. He was obviously from somewhere in Africa.

Hiccup came up to the counter, holding a box of nails and screws. "How's it going up here?"

She glanced over at him, then back to the man, "Do you speak English?"

"No no no _pizza,_ " he enunciated.

Hiccup set the box down and replied to the man with words that Astrid couldn't repeat if she wanted to.

The other man lit up and responded in kind. The two conversed quickly and with ease, and Hiccup beckoned that man back into the store and talked with him the whole way. All Astrid could do was sit in awe and wait for them to return.

And when they did, the man brought a blade for a circular saw.

Confused further, Astrid rang up the purchase while Hiccup translated.

The man paid with a card, and then thanked her with a nod of the head, "Asante."

"Karibu." Hiccup whispered to her.

She parroted it, and the man grinned and left the store.

After he departed, Hiccup resumed business as usual.

"Um, what was that?"

"What was what?"

"That! You spoke perfect—whatever language he was speaking!"

He laughed, "It was simple Swahili, easy."

Her shoulders rose, "so you're an expert on prosthetics and you speak African? What else can you do? Play the fiddle?"

"…my dad can."

"There's no end to the mystery of you, Henry Haddock." She shook her head. "Wait, was the Pygmies in Africa story true then?"

He scoffed, "not hardly. I lost my leg during a dog fight."

She narrowed her eyes. "I can't tell if you're being serious."

"You'll know." He grinned, "And to answer your unasked question, I spent a lot of my childhood in Tanzania."

"Oh, okay." She shrugged, that still didn't answer a lot.

The door rang. Tuff was back from his delivery.

"I've returned! Did everyone miss me?"

"No," Astrid stated, straight-laced.

He deflated. "Harsh, Hoff, harsh." He shook his head.

"While you're here," Astrid spoke to Hiccup, "I remembered I need to get some mealworms. Can you ring me out?"

"Oh sure." He agreed.

She found the food easily and brought it up.

"I didn't know you were one of those bird people," he laughed.

"Just one bird, my sweet Stormfly."

"Oh, parakeet? Canary?"

"Blue and Yellow Macaw."

He looked surprised for a moment before stating, "I also have an exotic pet."

"What?"

"A panther," he cheeked.

"Oh ha ha." She rolled her eyes.

"I have a komodo dragon!" Tuff shouted.

Astrid was startled for two seconds before Hiccup corrected, "you have a _bearded_ dragon."

"Psh, a dragon is a dragon."

—

One hour to go. Closing was time was just around the corner and Saturday night meant date night for Astrid. It would be the first time she'd see Scott in person in two weeks. It was emotionally draining having the opposite schedule to her boyfriend, but when they finally had a chance to be together, it was like they were never apart.

If she could just get through this hour.

Currently, it was just Gobber, Hiccup and Astrid remaining in the store. Tuff had finished everything he needed to do and Gobber sent him home before he started to break stuff.

Gobber was in the back, no doubt making another mess that Hiccup would have to clean. Astrid stood behind the counter, googling how to fix a stereo, since the only one they had in the shop was broken and Gobber refused to buy a new one. Every once in a while, she glanced over to Hiccup who stood a few feet way from her on a ladder.

The more the boy stretched, the less interesting her phone became. He'd reach over to place something in a drawer, and his shirt would raise just enough to see the band of his underwear and a sliver of skin.

She shook her head. Honestly, she was seeing another man, and if she was being frank, she'd been intimate with him a handful of times. Times too long ago to find comfort in, though.

His butt looked really nice in those jeans.

Hiccup reached to the left, putting his weight on his peg leg. The drawer was just a little too far, and if he raised his other foot just a little, then maybe—

His foot slipped. The box of screws in his hand went flying.

Astrid only heard him yelp before he fell. The back of his head slammed against the back of the counter and he folded into a heap on the floor. Thankfully, the glass didn't break.

"Hiccup!" Astrid was immediately by him, examining him.

It only took a few seconds for him to groan and blink up at her. "Astrid?"

"You fell," she explained as she helped him sit up.

Gobber ran out of the back room. "I saw the whole thing! Do I need to call an ambulance?"

Hiccup stood on wobbly legs and rubbed the back of his head. "No, no, I'm fine. It's just a bump."

"I'll be the judge of that," Astrid argued. She made him lean forward on the counter while she inspected the back of his head. "You're bleeding, but only a tad. No need for stitches."

"See? I'm fine."

"Hardly. Look at me."

He did.

She held out her index finger. "Follow my finger with your eyes." As she moved it in front of him, he was sluggish to respond. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I was putting away a quarter inch wood screw, I think…I know I was on the ladder."

"Yeah, but can you remember?"

"Yes."

She nodded, "okay. I definitely think you have a concussion."

He groaned.

"You don't have any memory loss, but you did black out for a few seconds."

Gobber looked at his watch. "Why don't you take him home lass, I can close up early."

"Me?" She asked, put off.

"Fishlegs doesn't get out for another two hours and it'll take Gobber some time to close everything up." Hiccup stated, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Okay okay, I can take you home. Where do you live?"

"Out by the Bridge." The town of Berk was a relatively decent sized. Gobber's store was located right in the middle of the town. To the west was Lake Michigan, to the east, farm, field and rural housing. The south was the Bridge, home to wealthy business owners and summer homes to Chicago residents. And the north housed the Harbor, once a separate town that went completely bankrupt and now was low income, high crime. Also, home to Astrid's dinky apartment. The college was North East, close to the Harbor, but still in the boondocks.

"Like, how far passed the Bridge?"

"By the nuclear plant."

"Oh come on, that's like twenty minutes away!"

"Fine, then I'll just sit here on the couch until Fishlegs gets out. Don't worry about it."

Astrid shook her head. "No…I'll take you home. I may not be a _registered_ nurse, but it's better than you sitting home by yourself."

"Thanks Astrid, I really appreciate you—it. This." He flinched.

She smirked. "Alright, let's give your keys to Fishlegs and then we'll get you home."

—

Hiccup slid into the leather seat with ease, kicking twenty water bottles and a trashcan worth of receipts out of his way.

"Sorry, I really need to clean my car."

He laughed, a sound that warmed her heart. "You should see my desk!"

"Since I'm taking you home, I think I will. Just to make myself feel better."

"Nooo!"

She turned the key, and the jeep whined but didn't start. Astrid frowned, and started it again. This time it sputtered before shaking and then roaring to life.

"Uh…"

"It does that sometimes." Astrid commented, putting it in drive. "Where to?"

"South, over the bridge and past the nuclear plant."

"Right right, okay."

She pulled out of the lot and drove out of town. Now that they were trapped together for twenty minutes, all conversation seemed to leave them. "I'd, uh, put some music on, but my radio doesn't work, and the only CD I have in the car is a Disney Princess CD."

"…and?"

—

"A WHOLE NEW WORLD~!"

"Don't you dare close your eyes~!"

"A HUNDRED THOUSAND THINGS TO SEE!"

Hiccup learned something important about Astrid that day. While she was a beautiful, intelligent, graceful creature, she couldn't carry a tune in a bucket.

"So there's the nuclear plant," she stated, coming out of her solo.

"Okay, so there's going to be a wooden fence coming up, take the second driveway, down the little path."

She nodded, and sure enough a fence came up.

"Right where this 'No Trespassing' sign is?"

"Yep!"

She continued down the winding dirt road until she got to a tunnel. "Wait a second!" She slammed on the brakes.

His head slammed against the headrest. "Ow! What!?"

"This is the Melonhead place!"

Hiccup turned in his seat and looked her in the eyes. "WHAT?!"

"The Melonheads!" She shouted.

"Stop screaming!" He screamed. "What are you talking about!?"

She rolled her eyes, "this is where the Melonheads live."

"The-the _what_?"

She shook her head and sat back in her seat, "during the 1950's, there was a leak from the nuclear plant into the surrounding neighborhoods, and everyone's brains swelled and pressed against their skulls. Then their brains kept growing and deformed their heads. So they were all crazy and if you went through this tunnel they'd attack you and chase you out. So, naturally, we'd come down here at night and 'hunt' for them. AKA, sit in the car with the lights on."

An astounded look came over his face. "Seriously? That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"Oh come on, don't me you didn't do it in high school."

"I was homeschooled for high school. Actually, uh, all of school, in a way."

Astrid flopped back against her seat. "Unbelievable."

Then, Hiccup sat up suddenly, his head injury forgotten. "Wait! If you know Fishlegs, then you must know Eret!"

"Eret 'body like Dwayne the Rock Johnson' Eretson? Sure, who didn't?"

Something unspoken was horrendously funny as Hiccup scrunched up his face and shook with giggles.

"Okay, what is it?"

"Just drive through, and all will be explained."

So Astrid pulled in through the tunnel, wary, and on the other side, the one way road continued back in a winding trail lined with thick woods. He pointed to a house, "That's where the high school principal lives."

"Huh, I've been looking for that woman's house to TP for years."

He pointed to another one, "This is a summer home for our friend Gerard."

"Gerard? Like…"

"Gerard Butler."

She slammed on the brakes again, "You know Gerard Butler?! Like, 'Phantom of the Opera' Gerard Butler?!"

"And by association, Jay Baruchel."

"Holy shit!"

He chuckled, "Astrid please, I know a lot of people."

They continued down the road, and Hiccup pointed out houses of celebrities, famous authors, directors, and prominent business owners. "Now, this is Eret's house." The house itself was concealed by trees, but had a long driveway that led to it, and the lake. "They have a dock that they let us and Fishleg's family use for launching our fishing boats."

"Okay, but what does that have to do with the Melonheads?"

"I'm getting to it!"

As they started to circle back around to the tunnel, Hiccup pointed. "Fishlegs lives here, and I live…here. Two houses away from the tunnel."

The house was on a hill, and a huge porch looked over the road, not to mention the canopy of trees. You could probably get a great view of the lake. She turned in the driveway.

"So, back in like…I don't know, freshmen year? It was pretty soon after I lost my leg…Eret gathered me, Fishlegs, and our friend Cami together and said he wanted to scare some friends of his with the tunnel. He told us to dress up like zombies and come towards them from this side of the tunnel. So, Fishlegs being the…cautious type, made us wear helmets in case something backfired. Cami, on the other hand, borrowed her dad's chainsaw. And I let my leg fall off as I was walking. We've done it like, three times a year since then. There's some high school kids that come looking for us now, but I didn't know we had a name."

Astrid stopped in front of the grand manor and silently turned off the engine. She sat, staring ahead and chewing her tongue. "I don't believe it."

"I mean, did you think the Melonheads actually existed? Because, if there was a leak at the plant it would have gone a lot farther than—"

Astrid whipped around and punched him in the arm.

"Ow! I'm already in pain! Why do you do this?!"

"Do you know how many nightmares I had after that?!"

"You were there?!"

"Of course I was! And I begged people not to go every time someone went hunting! It became a huge thing! All this time it was just you and Fishlegs in football helmets! I was terrified by a bunch of nerds!"

He laughed, "you weren't the only one! There were a lot of screams when Cami turned on the chainsaw."

She shook her head again and got out of the car. "If you didn't have an concussion, I would tackle you and beat you into the ground."

He paused for a moment, rubbing the bump on his head. "I don't know which is worse, because honestly this hurts...real bad."

"Then stop touching it! Lunkhead."

Hiccup scoffed, but got out of the jeep. The house was definitely bigger than her parents house, and looked like the perfect place for a summer getaway. It wasn't overly ornate or look to hold more than five bedrooms. But still, it had an eclectic flair. Very angular and lots of windows with a stone and wood facade.

"Is this one of those houses by that one guy?"

"What guy?"

"Lloyd…something."

"Frank Lloyd Wright?"

"Yeah! That guy!"

"As a matter of fact, it is!"

Astrid nodded in appreciation, then muttered under her breath, "Damn rich people."

Hiccup snickered at her and went to his garage. He threw himself bodily against the service door to open it.

"Umm…?"

"It sticks." He shrugged.

In the double garage, a motorcycle, half finished, sat off to the side.

"Looks like dad's staying late tonight," Hiccup commented, noting the lack of vehicles. "Maybe it's for the best so that I don't have another nagging lecture about being careful."

"Was the first after your leg?" She asked, brow raised.

He chuckled, "no, that was the eightieth one."

He unlocked the door and entered in a hallway where he skillfully kicked off his boot. "Please take your shoes off, my mom is really anal about scuffs on the floor."

"No prob." She snickered.

"What's so funny?"

"Do you have to put a tennis ball on your peg leg? You know, scuffs on the floor."

He pointedly ignored her.

The hall was short, and only had a laundry room, and a double staircase.

"Toothless! I'm home!" He called, walking up the short stairs.

She followed, looking at the vast cultural decor. The inside of the house looked like a cabin, as the walls and ceiling were made of logs, except the West wall which was all windows, and she could see out to the porch. She was right, it was a perfect view of Lake Michigan. She followed Hiccup into the main room, which had a wood floor and slanted ceiling. The Kitchen was a little bit further on the right and cut into the porch. It was surrounded with windows. Past it, was a stone fireplace. Next to the fireplace, there was a half step a a grand piano in the corner. Then there was the front door, followed by a couch along the wall, as well as one in the middle of the room facing a cabinet and glass coffee table.

"Make yourself at home, I'm going to see if we have a frozen bag of peas."

"Okay," she replied, absentmindedly as she took in everything. "Do you play the piano?"

"I can. I'm not Mozart, but you give me a week and a mp3, I can figure it out."

"Cool."

There were a lot of family photos. A portrait of the family, with a younger Hiccup, hung above the mantle. Dad Haddock looked friendly and intimating at the same time. His flaming red beard and massive size really made the 'Police Chief' title real. Mom Haddock looked very kind with bright green eyes, chestnut hair, and high cheek bones.

She continued to study the room.

"Can I get you anything? Water? Pop? A cold brewsky?" Hiccup called from the kitchen.

"Water's fine."

The decor looked African, and it made sense since he said he grew up in Tanzania. There were wooden masks and other hand carved statues of elephants and giraffes scattered about in the corners and on tables. Lots of zig-zag patterns on blankets and pillows on the couch.

Her eyes drifted up to the ceiling where a stuffed panther sat on a beam.

"So, when your family was in Africa, were they big game hunters?"

"No, my mom's a Missionary."

"Oh…then how'd you get the…" Her sentence fell short as she noticed the calculated swishing of the Panther's tail. It was alive, and it was looking at her.

She screamed bloody murder.

The panther leapt from it's perch and landed on the floor in front of her with grace.

She continued to scream.

"Astrid! What's wrong!?" Hiccup barreled into the room with a broom in one hand and a bag of frozen peas in the other. But he relaxed as soon as he saw the cat. "Oh, I see you've met Toothless."

Astrid took the opportunity to leap over the couch, like it would do any good. "What the actual _hell_ Henry Haddock!?"

Hiccup dropped his weapon and sat on the floor as Toothless nuzzled against his side affectionately. "I told you I had a panther."

"I didn't think you were being literal! I thought you meant you had a black cat! Like, domestic house cat!"

"Oh he is a domestic house cat! He's just a big baby!" He scratched under Toothless' chin and rubbed his cheek between his ears.

"Is it even legal to own a panther?"

"Not usually," he admitted. "But I have very special permission from the Department of Natural Resources. Toothless can't survive in the wild and he gets anxious without me."

Astrid relaxed when the cat flopped on the ground, belly up. "How on earth did you…you know, get him?"

He looked at Toothless, then at his leg, then finally at her. "It's a really long and complicated story."

"I am watching you for a few hours. We might as well chat."

Hiccup sat with her on the couch while Toothless stretched across the back of it.

"So, my mom's a missionary in Tanzania."

"Right."

"I was actually born over there. I lived in a village called Kanganya until I was five, then we came to the US, then just mom and I went back when I was 8. I found Toothless as a cub one day, while I was out exploring the woods. You know…like kids do. I think I was pretending to be a pirate or something. Anyways, Mom always told me to be careful out there, but I was such a bad kid. I never listened."

" _Was?_ "

He gave her a flat look before continuing. "His mom had been killed by poachers. Her fur was pretty dark, not as dark Toothless', but worthless to people how want the iconic leopard spots. Mom and I think they killed her to take her cubs, since leopard cubs are a commodity on the black market. But they didn't take Toothless since he had black fur. Instead, they tried to kill him too. When I found him, he was curled under his mom's paw, and bleeding horribly. His teeth had been knocked out, too. Hence, the name Toothless. If I hadn't been dangerously curious, I wouldn't have found him."

While he spoke, Toothless started to sniff her, then occasionally licked behind her ear. Astrid tensed every time.

"I brought him home and showed him to mom, and we cleaned him up the best we could. You know, like every kid bring home a injured bird or rabbit."

"Yeah, and you just happened to bring home a carnivore. No difference."

"A man from the village said even if he made it, he wouldn't be able to survive in the wild without a mother since he was so young. And so we nursed him back to full health and to an age where he could handle everything on his own." He snickered and played with his tail. "Only he didn't. We turned him loose in the jungle, and then that night, he came home and sat patiently at the door, waiting to come in. Everyday, mom would put him outside, and he just stayed around the house instead of running away. He never really learned how to be a leopard, instead, he watched the dogs in the village and acted like them…sort of. A little bit of both, I think."

"Seems like he adopted you guys as his family."

"That's exactly what happened."

Toothless' tail would stray from the couch and tickle under Hiccup's chin. Each time, Hiccup would grab it and put it over to the other side of the couch. It was becoming apparent that he was doing it on purpose. Though Hiccup's irritation was obvious, he did nothing to stop it.

"Leopards weren't really a favorite animal in the village, since the whole…you know, livestock thing…but everyone seemed to like him well enough. He caught mice and rodents for food, and one time caught a boar and brought it to the village for everyone to share. Everyone loved him after that."

Astrid finally felt adventurous enough to pet the leopard. Toothless affectionately nudged her back, appreciating the pats. "So, how did you get him here? I'm sure that just batting your big green eyes and saying, 'pretty please?' probably didn't work."

He blushed, a coy smile on his face. "You can tell my eyes are green?"

She blushed slightly too, "who can't? They're freaking huge!" She shook her head, "continue."

"So…fast forward to age 14. Toothless and I are frolicking in a field, doing as boys do, and I felt the most intense pain in my leg that I have ever felt. Now, let me clarify. I have gotten third degree burns, stitches, broken bones, and my cousin punched me in the face and knocked one of my teeth out. None of those even came close to how much that hurt. I looked down, and there was a puff adder clamped on my ankle."

"Is that a snake?"

"Yeah, it's a super poisonous snake. But it's venom is really slow, so it kills slowly but surely."

Astrid cringed.

"After I got bit, I don't remember a lot, but I know I started back to the village, but I probably only made it a few steps before I fell. I remember seeing Toothless run off and assuming that he got scared of the snake and left. But mom said he came barreling into the church, _where he wasn't allowed_ , right in the middle of a meeting, and grabbed mom's dress in his mouth and started tugging. Everyone else was freaking out, because…you know live panther in the church, but mom knew something was wrong immediately. So she called everyone she could and followed Toothless in the jeep, because no one could keep up with him."

Astrid was highly invested at this point as she clutched a pillow to her chest.

"They took me to the village and the doctor there did what he could, but I had to be airlifted to a hospital like, an hour away by Kenya. They treated me there, dubbed me untreatable for them once gangrene started to set in, and then shipped me off to the US, where they ended up cutting off my leg. The whole time, Toothless was by my side."

Astrid stared at him, wide-eyed. "They let a panther into a hospital?"

He chuckled, pushing Toothless' tail out of his face once again. "You try telling a panther what to do."

She shrugged, "fair enough."

"Well, once we got to the US, they became a lot more strict about him being there, you know…not letting him in the _operating room_. Which is totally understandable. If my mom hadn't been there, someone might have gotten mauled."

Astrid widened her eyes. "Seriously?"

"But because she was there, Toothless sat in the waiting room for hours. He didn't eat or sleep, he just sat there, head in his paws."

"Aww…"

"During that time, he met my dad, who didn't share my mom's enthusiasm for me owning a big cat, but he got over it when he heard the story. Right after I lost my leg, I was still in critical condition and no one was allowed to see me. Toothless stopped eating all together and started pulling his hair out, which are textbook signs of anxiety."

Astrid looked to Toothless and scratched under his chin. He warbled in appreciation.

"Finally, they let him stay with me in the room to help me recover. It was only a couple hours later that I woke up."

Toothless stood from his place on the couch and came around the front, laying himself in Hiccup's lap.

"Long story short, he saved my life."

"That's…amazing. He's amazing."

"And heavy." Hiccup commented, trying to free himself of the beast. "Come on Bud, let's get you something to eat."

Astrid followed behind, dutifully. But Hiccup seemed to be doing just fine. "How's your head?"

"Hurts, but the peas help." He set them down on the counter as he went to the fridge. The bottom drawer was filled with paper packages, that she knew were raw steaks.

"He eats _steak?_ "

"We tried to give him cat food, but he didn't like it. Sometimes he goes outside and catches mice and squirrels, but this was the best meal for a growing cat."

"Must…uh, must be pretty expensive…"

"You would think!" He unwrapped the package and put it in an oversized food bowl on the floor. "But I found a butcher who gives me all of his steaks that are about to go bad for an extreme discount. He likes that they don't have to go to waste."

"That's cool!" She smiled.

The conversation lulled and Astrid ground her toe into the floor.

"Uh, wanna watch a movie?" He suggested.

"Sorry, if you have a concussion, you shouldn't do anything the strains your eyes like T.V. or video games. We really shouldn't have been listening to music either."

"Oh…"

She grinned, "I believe you have a messy desk to show me."

"Nooooo…" he groaned.

"Its either that, or we could gossip about our co-workers."

He chuckled, "don't we do that anyway?"

"Your desk, monsieur."

He sighed, "Okay, why not!" He lead her back down the hall, down the stairs, and then down the second flight of stairs. "So, this is my parents room," he gestured to the doors, "guest room one, grandpa's room when he comes to visit, my room, and the bathroom is passed that, and then the door to the basement is at the end of the hall." He opened his door a smidge, "be warned, it's a mess."

'A mess' wasn't even remotely close. The room didn't even look like it had been lived in. The far wall, like upstairs, was all windows, but at this height, the view was of the trees. Everything had it's own place, to a chest at the foot of the bed, to the looming filling cabinet next to the expansive mahogany desk. A Celtic rug covered the hardwood floor.

"If I had known I was going to have someone over, I would have cleaned up."

"Cleaned up what?! There's nothing messy about this!" She looked over the desk, and saw stacks of books and papers strewn everywhere. "Except the desk, that's a little, tiny, ever so slightly cluttered."

He chuckled, "if you think this is clean, then don't go in my dad's room. It looks like a hotel room."

She shook her head in amazement. "Is your mom currently in Africa?"

"Yeah?"

"Amazing."

"What?"

"Two men, living on their own, and their house is immaculately clean. You could give a few lessons to Gobber."

Hiccup bristled. "Don't even get me started on the store!"

Suddenly, Astrid's phone went off. It was Scott.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"6:30."

She answered her phone. "Hey! I thought we were meeting at Papa Vinos at 8?"

Hiccup watched as her face went from pleasant, to confused, then disappointed. It didn't suit her.

"Yeah? Next week is fine. Sure…yeah…no, I'm not-I'm not upset. It's just…no I understand." She sighed heavily. "Yeah, don't worry about it. Thanks for calling me this time. I love—…" She pulled her phone away from her ear and he swore he saw tears in her eyes.

"Everything…okay?" Obviously not, but it was all he had.

"Yeah…" She sighed again. "Scott cancelled on me again."

"Again?"

"He works as a welder, and often has to stay long hours to fix other people's work. I mean, he works the third shift, so I don't get to see him much anyway, but…"

Hiccup grasped her shoulder, affectionately. "Do you want to stay here? Just for the evening? We can make some Mac and cheese for dinner and…I don't know, keep chatting because I'm apparently not allowed to do anything else."

She laughed, "you know, I think I would really enjoy that."

—

I am not justifying cheating, even if your significant other is neglectful. Astrid and Hiccup will only be friends as long as she's dating Scott.


	4. May 9, 2016

If anyone is wondering what the 'based on actual events' means, all of the customers are based on real people (I work at Ace Hardware). Astrid's roommates are based on my roommates (I've had the worst of the worst). I'm also basing this Berk off of my home town. The Melonheads are a real thing, and it's terrifying. Gobber's store is based of a place called 'Skellville' (you'll find it if you google it). Some other plot points are based on real life.

Also, I added the year to the chapter titles because I had an idea. Is it a good idea? Heck if I know.

"Where's the duct tape?"

It was a justified question, being a hardware store, and if Astrid had been there longer than a few weeks, maybe she'd know.

She raised the radio, like she had dozens of times before, "Hiccup, duct tape."

" _Oh…uh, aisle three, middle rack, bottom shelf._ "

The old man who asked the question nodded in appreciation and dived into the fray.

Now that Astrid had plenty of experience under her belt, Hiccup deemed her capable enough to run the register without him watching. She still had to ask a few questions, but that was to be expected, especially with a store as big and crazy as it was.

Mildew had just left, as Astrid had come in an hour early. Though, it seemed like every shift she came in earlier and earlier. Sometimes she came right from school, still in scrubs with a gym bag over her shoulder and a McDonald's bag in her hand.

It had been a slow day, the rain keeping most customers away. Except this old, creepy toothless man who came perusing the store.

The old man returned, and put a roll of black tape on the counter. "It's 20 times stronger than duct tape! Perfect for tying up the wife!"

Astrid finished the transaction with a poorly concealed cringe on her face.

Not but a few moments later, Tuff came back from his delivery. "Hoff, radio me." He demanded, without so much as a 'how-do-you-do?'

She slid it across the counter as he hiccuped loudly.

"Oh dearest Henry," he began, pausing to hiccup again, "your presence is requested in the foyer of the employment institution."

" _What?_ "

"Come up front."

" _Hang on_."

From the back of the room, a larger clatter was heard along with a shout.

"Hiccup!?" Astrid shouted.

The radio beeped, " _I'm all right, I'm allllll right._ " It was just a few minutes until Hiccup emerged from the pile, dusting off his jeans. "Okay Tuff, what's up?"

The boy in question hiccuped.

"Oh."

"Do the thing."

"What thing?" Astrid questioned, leaning on the counter.

"Behold!" Hiccup shouted, as he raised his hands. He clapped in a circle around Ruff's head and clicked his tongue. Then he waved in hand right in his face, making his eyes follow his fingers, then he tapped the sides of Tuff's face with an 'allakhazam!'"

The hiccuping ceased.

"Oh, so that's why they call you Hiccup." Astrid mused. "How'd you do that?"

"A magician never reveals his secrets," Tuff answered pointedly.

"There's a pressure point right in front of the ear that relaxes the diaphragm. Sometimes it works, sometimes not." Hiccup shrugged.

"…the magic is gone." Tuff sighed. Then he snapped his fingers, "Oh Hiccup, I thought you might want to know, but Alvin is sitting across the street."

"Again?!" The boy looked out the window of the door with a frown. "Why does he do that?"

"What exactly?" Astrid asked, peering out the window too.

Hiccup groaned, going back to the counter and grabbing a broom. "He watches the store from across the street, because he's afraid we'll screw up or someone will steal something. I don't know exactly, but in a little bit, he'll come over here and blame something on me. Just act busy."

Tuff yanked the broom out of his hands and started half heartedly sweeping.

It wasn't more then a minute later when the man in question came in.

He had dark hair, groomed carefully and eyes that were razor sharp. Unlike Gobber in his sloppy attire, this man was dressed in a expensive looking suit. He glanced around the shop and eyed Hiccup.

"Henry," he stated, his voice cold like ice and sickeningly gritty.

"Alvin! H-hey, boss!" Hiccup was a poor actor. "What brings you here?"

"The store is a mess." The man stated, his voice even.

"Well, we're all working hard to get it looking nice."

Alvin's gaze looked over to Astrid, who worked quietly and diligently sorting the screws from the box. "I've never seen you before."

She met his steely eyes and smiled with all her grace and charm. "Pleased to meet you, my name is Astrid Hofferson, and I just started work a couple weeks ago."

"Hofferson, you say?"

"Yes, sir."

He continued to stare, his eye raking over her form. "This was a good hire." He stated. "But, your hair…"

Astrid self-consciously grabbed the high ponytail. "What about it?"

The man gave a smarmy smile. "It's not really professional. You look like a high schooler. It's all well and good for here, but if you want a real job, you'll get it cut."

She raised an eyebrow and responded. "My dad really likes my long hair, I really wouldn't want to cut it."

"Well, a man really shouldn't be a factor in a woman's appearance," Alvin argued.

"Like what you're doing?" Hiccup muttered under his breath.

Alvin either didn't hear it, or chose not to comment.

"Gobber's in the back, in case you wanted to talk to him."

"I thought he was working on the refrigerator project?"

"He finished it an hour ago."

"How much did they pay?"

Hiccup shrugged. "You know he never tells me that kind of stuff."

Alvin rolled his eyes. "Then what good are you to me?"

Hiccup gestured to the store, "I don't know. I'm sure anyone could have organized this mess."

Alvin shook his head without a word and went into the back.

"Man, what a walking bag of dicks." Tuff huffed, "I don't know why he talks to you like that. Me? I can understand, but you? It's a mystery."

"Its 'cause of my dad." Hiccup elaborated. "There's some weird legal history between them, so he's kind of harsh on me because of it. At least, that's what I think."

The pile of nails laid forgotten as Astrid soaked up the juicy gossip. "Is your dad a lawyer or something?"

"Chief of Police, actually. I don't know anything else though, don't really care."

Astrid snapped her fingers, "it's harassment though, and he could get in a lot of trouble."

"And then what would happen? The only reason we have jobs is because of Alvin. Gobber does great work and makes good money, but not enough to keep this store running."

Astrid pondered it for a moment. "Then why bother keeping the store open, if it's not turning over a profit? Why bother renting the building?"

"Gobber owns the building. It's totally paid off." Hiccup supplied.

Suddenly, there was shouting from the back. "300?! The client and I agreed on a thousand!"

"And we'll get a thousand! Richard's wife just had a baby, you can't expect them to pay off the bill in one lump sum!"

"And who's going to pay for the parts you replaced if they aren't?! Surely we aren't making enough up front to cover it!"

"Oh calm down ya big baby! I have a good reputation with the company. I already called them and they've agreed to let me pay as the Lawerence's payment comes in."

"You can't keep doing this! One day your 'reputation' won't be able to cover you!"

"If you think so, why don't you just get out while you can!"

"You know I can't do that!"

"It's not my fault you got caught! What if you, oh I don't know, keep your deal with Stoick instead of yelling at the boy all the time!"

Alvin's response was too quiet to hear.

"It was your idea to install security cameras!"

The room went quiet.

"Holy shit," Tuff laughed. "Gobber's so hardcore."

"Profanity Tuff," Hiccup scolded.

"There's no one here."

"Then what am I? Chopped liver?"

The door to the back opened again and Alvin returned, looking as calm and collected as ever. He glanced around the room and then left the store without a word.

"I see what you meant," Astrid stated, watching him through the window. "I didn't want to meet him."

Hiccup met her eyes, "Your hair is fine, you know. There's no reason to cut it if you don't want to."

She smirked. "Thanks."

Gobber came out of the back room, in a sweaty t-shirt and a scowl. "How much of that conversation did you kiddos hear?"

" **All of it**." Came the unanimous reply.

"Good. I don't want to hide things from you all."

Astrid knew as the most recent hire, she was the most out of the loop, and probably had no right to ask, but she did anyway. "Why does he stick around if he doesn't like what your doing?"

"Ah, lass, now there's a good story."

Astrid and Hiccup both leaned in on their elbows on the counter. Tuff sat on the ice cream freezer.

"Now, I'm not too sure on how money works, so don't take my word on everything. But as I'm sure you've figured out, Alvin is a bit of a financial wiz. And he was once employed by a Mr. Stoick Haddock."

"My dad," Hiccup clarified.

"Now, while Hiccup may not look like it, the Haddock family has a lot of accumulated wealth. Mr. Haddock sought out a financial advisor, ergo Alvin T Retcher..."

"Okay."

"Now, it was ten years since he was hired when Stoick decided to pull money out to pay for Hiccup's amputation and _other_ expenses when he discovered that the ten thousand dollars that were supposed to go into some growth fund had gained zero interest."

Tuff's eyes glazed over and he went back to sweeping.

"Even in a bank, that money would have tripled by then. But nothing. So, being the chief of police, Stoick pulled some resources and x-rayed Alvin's account and found over 10 million bucks being laundered in. Not just from him either, a bunch of other business owners were caught up in the scheme."

Tuff's interest returned at the mention of 10 million bucks.

"Stoick and Alvin settled it outside of court, since really, Alvin had no chance of winning his case. A deal was made to return all of the money down to the last penny to the people he'd stolen from. As punishment, Alvin had to become my financial advisor with zero commission. He decided to make the best of his situation by investing in the store, with gave me money to fix up the building and hire employees to run the front. That was…how long ago was that Hiccup?"

"Uh…probably when I starting working here…so, seven years ago?"

Astrid slapped her hand against the counter. "You've been working here for seven years?!"

"Yep, right after I lost my leg at 14."

Tuff, who had followed along thus far, added, "what does Hiccup have to do with this?"

"Hiccup, bless the lad, costs more to us because of his leg."

Hiccup frowned in reply.

"Since Stoick and I are best friends, we were already talking about Hiccup having a job here before he lost it. So it kills Alvin to have him here. But really boy-o, there's no one I'd rather have on my team than you."

The door rang and a customer came in. "Huh…my toilet's backed up and the plunger isn't doing it. Help."

Gobber sprang into action, "certainly! Let's see what we can do!"

—

It wasn't a half hour later when Hiccup clocked out for his break. He came out of the back room with a paper sack and a can of coke. He took a seat on the high chair behind the counter by Astrid.

"Are you allowed to eat up here?"

He shrugged. "Never had a problem before. Especially when I had to run the register by myself."

"Fair enough."

He took his sandwich out. "Oh that's right, I have a present for you."

"Is it that sandwich?"

"I mean…you can have it if you want it. It's ham and butter."

She crinkled her nose. "Pass."

He grinned and dug around in the pocket of his jacket. "So, this is just a thank you for taking me home and staying with me when I hit my head last week."

"Oh Hiccup, you didn't have to get me anything! You made me dinner and gave me a place to hang out when I was feeling down."

" _Regardless_ ," he held out a wrapped square. "I remembered you said the only CD you have to listen to is Disney Princesses. And I love 'Bonjour' just as much as the next guy, but I'm sure it's getting old."

"A bit."

"So I thought to myself, 'what sexy male singer would a girl of any age enjoy?'"

"I swear if this is Justin Bieber, you're about to have another concussion."

He grinned, "not Justin _Bieber_ …."

She looked at him carefully, then unwrapped the package. "Justin Timberlake. I am okay with this."

"Really? I was expecting a punch in the arm."

"I still could, don't tempt me." She looked over the song list as Gobber came out of the backroom. "You know, when I was in elementary school, I used to have a huge crush on him."

"Oh, you shouldn't have told me that." Hiccup snickered.

"A crush on who?" Gobber asked.

" **Justin Timberlake.** " They said unanimously.

"Oh good ole JT? He's a dreamboat." Gobber waited for their laughter to subside before saying, "Astrid, I just got a bunch of Ice Cream for the freezer up front, can you restock it when you get the chance?"

"You can go as soon as I finish my break." Hiccup added, "I'll watch the register."

"Cool beans."

"Can you two behave for a half hour? I have to run to the bank."

"No problem."

"Good, just no more injuries! I don't want to pay more into disability then I already do…" and with that, he left.

"So…" Hiccup leaned on his elbow. "Justin Timberlake, huh?"

"It _was_ a mistake telling you!" She exasperated.

"I'm just curious! I don't hate his music. I just didn't take you as the type to crush on a celebrity."

She rolled her eyes. "I said I had a crush on him in _Elementary School_. Like, he was fresh out of NSYNC. I haven't listened to him since 'Cry Me a River.'"

"Oh."

"I have different taste in men now." Astrid's phone buzzed and she hurriedly glanced at it. Then with an irritated huff, she shoved it back into her pocket.

"Let me guess, Scott bailed on you again?"

"No…" She lamented. "He just wants to have dinner early so he can go to the bar with his buddies tonight. I haven't seen him in two weeks, and he just wants to get _dinner_ somewhere."

"Tell him no," Hiccup muttered into his soda. "Put your foot down and tell him that he's spending the evening with you, instead of getting drunk."

"The thing is, he wouldn't listen to me anyway. He does what he wants."

"Is he going to do that when you're married?"

She looked at him skeptically. "I don't know if I want to marry Scott."

"Then why are you dating him?"

Astrid didn't have an answer.

"You've dated for two years, so the trial period is kind of over. He's either the guy you want to be with forever, or you should move on."

"That's pretty harsh."

He raised his eyebrows. "I never met this guy, but by how you talk about him, I can only picture him as, well, as Tuff would say, a walking bag of dicks."

Astrid was silent.

"Having a few complaints about your significant other is one thing, but you never have anything good to say about him."

"He's plenty good!" She argued. "He's kind, and he compliments me, and he's generous. He's funny and handsome, and I love him."

Hiccup nodded once. "Okay, then you have officially talked good about him."

She chewed her lip, "why do you even care about this?"

He shrugged. "I guess I shouldn't, but I would date for marriage. Like…what else is there if you aren't trying to find your soulmate?"

"Not being alone?"

"I'm alone and I seem to be happier then you."

She glared at him.

"Right, sorry, that was rude."

She pushed passed him, heading for the backroom. "Looks like you finished your sandwich. I'm going to use the bathroom and then get that ice cream."

"I wouldn't use that bathroom…"

"As a nurse in training, I've seen some pretty disgusting things. I think I'm fine."

"Whatever you say!"

Still angry, Astrid snuck into the back. She opened the bathroom, stopped and slammed it shut. The stench was overwhelming and made her eyes water.

He was right…again.

Her body felt hot and her hands trembled.

 _How dare he?_

How dare he be so right in everything? How dare he make her triple guess her decisions and her relationship with Scott? She had already decided to stick with him, so how dare Hiccup get in her head?

She opened the freezer and started looking through the boxes and boxes of Häagen-Dazs. The freezer door slowly swung shut and latched.

Astrid glanced over, panicked for a second, before she saw the latch on the inside.

She finished loading a big box with an assortment of ice cream, and then went to open the door, only to have the handle break off in her hand.

"Of course." She spoke out loud. "Everything else in this place is a piece of junk, why wouldn't the freezer be?!"

She pounded on the door. "Hiccup! I'm stuck!" She continued to pound on the door until her hand hurt from the cold metal.

Astrid tossed the box of treats off to the side and stuck her hands into her armpits. It was May, and she only wore a short sleeved blouse. Not even a cotton one, just some thin, itchy material.

"Well, Hiccup thinks I'm in the bathroom, Gobber's off on errands, and Tuff's delivering a fixed snowblower." She sighed, her breath coming out in a cloud. "I'll have to wait no matter what."

She rubbed her hands and pounded on the door again, as long as she could.

"This is like that SpongeBob episode where Squidward gets stuck in the freezer and gets transported to the future." She sat down on a box in the corner, as far away from the motor as possible. "Except when I get out of here, I'm sure I'll be looking at the inside of a casket instead of a chrome landscape."

She leaned against her legs, which were fortunately covered with jeans.

Minutes passed as her teeth chattered. Every once in a while, she'd pound on the door.

She trembled again, but not in anger. Her shivers were so persistent that it _hurt_.

 _Just a little longer…_

The freezer door opened suddenly, and she fought to stand.

Hiccup's hand reached in and pulled her out of the cold air and into his chest. Astrid was stunned for a moment, but let it happen anyways.

"I heard thudding, but I didn't realize what it was at first!" He spoke into her hair. "I'm so sorry!"

"It's not your fault…" she chattered. "Were you worried about me?"

He pulled away from her, still holding her arms. She continued to shake. "I was trying to warm you up, but if it bothers you…"

She uncrossed her arms and pulled him back into the hug. "No, this is nice."

And it was. He was boney, and her cheek rested on his sharp collar bone, but he was _warm_. And he smelled good.

He held tight, rubbing warmth into her with his hands.

"Astrid?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing! It's not your fault we have an ancient industrial freezer just for ice cream!"

"I…I wasn't talking about that."

"Oh."

He stopped his motions and just hugged her. "I do care about your relationship with Scott, because I care about _you_. As a co-worker and a friend. I don't like seeing that disappointed look on your face. But I'm sorry I said what I did, it was mean."

She rested her head on his shoulder. "You were right though. I'm going to have a talk with Scott tonight. I'll see if I can't change his mind about us."

Hiccup pulled away and smiled at her. "Are you still cold?"

"Yeah…"

"Why don't you go back up front? I'll get something to help with that."

Her arms wrapped around herself once again, she made her way back into the empty store.

It was only a few minutes later that something warm was draped around her shoulders. "Sorry, it's my crummy jacket."

Astrid quickly put her arms through the sleeves and zipped it up to her collar, his scent clung to her heavily.

 _Damn_ , he smelled good.

"I also found this space heater. I don't know how well it works, but we can try it."

"Hiccup?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

"Anything for you, Milady. Can't have our only shield maiden going down in a blizzard."

—

She arrived at Papa Vinos at precisely 6:38, still in her work clothes.

"I thought you ditched me," The man speaking was short and beefy in build. His broad chin was dotted with the faint hairs of an attempted beard. His hair, raven black, was parted in the middle, and curled around his ears. His ocean blue eyes, the same eyes she used to gaze into for hours, had not changed, but great amusement reflected back.

"Sorry, I got out of work kind of late. One of those customers that came in at the last second before closing and didn't know what he was looking for."

"Ah, I see." He nodded, looking at his phone. "Hey, I ordered for you."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, your usual shrimp scampi."

She raised an eyebrow, "I never eat shrimp…"

"Oh? I could have sworn you did. Well, we'll just flag down a waitress and change it."

"Thanks though…for trying."

"Of course, babe."

She drummed her fingers on the table. "So uh, anything exciting happen to you this week?"

He didn't look up from his phone. "Not particularly."

"God damn it Scott!" She nearly shouted, "I haven't seen you in two weeks!"

"We talk all the time." He argued.

"Yeah, through text! That's not enough!"

He set his phone down and eyed her critically. "Where'd you get the jacket, Astrid? Looks a little big for you."

She swallowed as she looked down to Hiccup's jacket that she was still wearing. It was so comfortable that she forgot about it. "Oh this? It's actually a funny story. I got locked in the freezer at work."

"In the freezer? I thought you worked at a Hardware store?"

"I do, but it used to have a soda fountain in it, and the freezer is ancient, and that's why I got locked in it."

"Okay, go on…"

"So, I was in there for like 15 minutes before my coworker found me and gave me his jacket to warm up."

" _He_?"

"It's a hardware store, I'm the only girl that works there."

"Astrid…you aren't cheating on me, are you?"

She rolled her eyes. "No, I'm not. We've been over this, I have never cheated on you."

"What about that guy you went to dinner with a months ago? David said he saw you two together all weekend."

"David's an idiot, and I don't know why you insist on being friends with him. That guy is my _cousin_. He stayed with me while Uncle Finn had his house fumigated. You remember my Uncle Finn? You went to his house for Halloween our first year together."

"…Sorry…"

She reached across the table and took his hand. "Scott, I know you've been cheated on before. But I've given you plenty of reason to trust me. I love you, and I wouldn't do anything to jeopardize our relationship."

He looked down at the table and then back at her. "Okay…"

"Is this why you've been avoiding me lately? You think I'm cheating on you?"

He scratched behind his ear. "No…I—…" He dropped his hand to the counter. "Look, I have to be honest. We never laugh anymore. All I ever hear from you is complaints and woes. It's kind of depressing."

She crossed her arms over the table and sighed. "I know. But I really need you right now. This job has been good for me, but with my rent and my dad—…"

He heard her starting a tirade, and he cut her off. "Hey, it's not my fault your dad's retarded."

She sat up suddenly as she stared at him, "What did you just say?"

"I'm just saying…you dwell on your dad too much. You'd be happier if you didn't worry about him."

Her nostrils flared. "Unlike you, I have a good relationship with my dad. I wouldn't expect you to understand what I'm going through."

Scott grimaced. "Sorry I brought it up."

She sighed, her anger spent. As it always was with Scott. "It's okay."

There was a pregnant pause. "I'll try to lighten up a bit. I'm sorry for weighing you down with my problems."

"Hey, it's okay. But don't you have anyone you can vent to?"

Her lack of friends was a sore spot for Astrid. She used to have plenty of friends in Highschool, and then she graduated and went to college. By time she came back, everyone but Ruff had moved on with life. Heaven knows Ruff would blather about her problems to everyone.

"What, like a therapist?"

"Yeah!"

"With the money I have?"

"I could spot you the money."

"Absolutely not, I already owe you too much."

"I'm not expecting you to pay me back soon, just…when you get the chance. Don't stress about it."

She sighed, once again. "Okay."

Scott waved to a waitress, "Hi, can we change that order?"

—

I have a playlist for every fanfic I write. The playlist for this one is all just Justin Timberlake.


	5. June 1 2016

So, first things first. Many of you have been asking me if I have a tumblr. I do, under the same name. I also have a Twitter, Instagram, AO3 and a (brand spanking baby new) Facebook page, because I'm an artist (I do a lot of HTTYD fan art, and illustrate my fics. So you should check me out.)

Also, my birthday is on Tuesday, so everyone should review this story and tell me what they like about it so far.

Enjoy!

—

"I want credit."

The woman had bought four gallons of paint and just inserted her card into the chip reader. She was the kind of woman that would be a headache if things didn't go perfectly. And Astrid would know.

"Okay, tap the green circle."

"But I want credit," She said, her brown eyes filling with an evil only known in retail.

Astrid was undeterred, "Yes, and when the PIN screen comes up, just hit the green circle again to skip out."

"But what about the red x? That's what it usually is."

"That's for slide. Chip is green circle. If you hit the red x on a chip, it cancels the transaction."

"That doesn't make any sense."

Astrid shrugged, "I know, I find it frustrating too."

"Okay, so green circle?"

"Green circle."

The woman pressed a button, but then frowned. "It said transaction cancelled."

"...did you press the green circle?"

"No, because red x is always credit."

Astrid closed her eyes for a second and breathed. "Will you excuse me for a moment?" She pulled out her radio. "Hiccup, can you come here for a second? We seem to be having some technical difficulties."

" _Sure, just a sec._ "

"Are you sure it's the machine? Because it seems like you don't know what you're doing." The woman snidely remarked.

"I'm sure that _must_ be what's going on." Astrid tried not to sound sarcastic as she typed the code back in, but it was very very difficult. By time she was all rung up, Hiccup was behind the counter looking over her shoulder.

"What's up?"

"She would like credit on a chip, but I've been told that red x is always credit."

He nodded his head once, understanding the situation in an instant. "I'll try what I can. Here, why don't you go do what I was doing?"

She smiled gratefully and walked persistently one aisle back, and listened.

"Alright, your total is 116.87. May I see your card?"

"Can't I just do it?"

"I'm going to type in the numbers and do it manually."

"Oh alright."

Astrid heard a series of clicks, a beep and a receipt printing out. "Thank you for your patience and thank you for shopping with us!"

"Are you the manager?"

"…yes." He sort of was, in a way. "Can I assist you?"

"You should really fire that other girl. She has a bad attitude and she doesn't know what she's doing."

Hiccup laughed, "oh Astrid's a saint! She seems like she has a bad attitude, but it's just the way she is. And she only started this week, so she _doesn't_ know everything."

"Oh." The woman paused. "Well, then keep an eye on her."

"Of course ma'am." He smiled.

When Astrid heard the bell, she came back out. "A saint, huh?"

"You know how the machine works, why did you need my help?"

Astrid scoffed. "Because that woman is the worst. She was the reason I was fired from Bath and Body."

"Wait wait wait, _her_? You remember it was her? For sure?"

"I would recognize that 'I want to speak to the manager' haircut anywhere."

"Hmmph." He crossed his arms, "well, rest assured, unless you steal something or give a customer the bird, you probably won't get fired. Tuff didn't even get fired when we caught him smoking weed in the bathroom."

"I mean, it's probably an improvement on the smell."

"Either way, I wouldn't worry about it. I like having you here, Gobber likes having you here. And no stranger is going to change our minds."

She gave Hiccup a heart warming smile. "Thank you, it's nice to be reassured."

Tuff came in, three hotdogs wrapped in foil in hand and a skinned knee. "I brought lunch!"

"Oh thanks!" Astrid grinned, taking a hotdog. "What happened to your leg?"

He glanced down. "Oh, right…so I got super high last night."

"What else is new?" Hiccup spoke, taking his hotdog.

"And I learned something very important from this experience. Apparently, I can unicycle."

"Not very well, I assume. Did you put something on that?"

"Yeah, I rubbed some dirt in it. It'll be fine."

Hiccup rolled his eyes, and looked at the hotdog with skepticism. "Where'd you get this?"

"From Dagger." Tuff answered easily, taking a bite.

Hiccup re-wrapped the dog, and set it down. Then he went to the window.

"Is everything okay?" Astrid asked, noticing his closed off stance.

Hiccup answered shortly. "The hot dog vender is in business."

"Yeah…? He comes out every summer."

"I hate him." He glared.

"Why…?"

Tuff provided the answer as Hiccup continued to glare out the window. "Hiccup thinks that Dagger has it out for him, because he always overcharges him for his hotdogs."

"Why does he do that?"

"No one knows. Maybe he hates amputees, maybe he knows that Hiccup's rich…either way, Hiccup can't get hotdogs from him on his own."

"But they're so good!" The other boy lamented from the window.

"Why do you call him Dagger?" Astrid asked.

"Gobber said one time, "stop glaring daggers at him," and it stuck."

Astrid looked over to the door and sure enough, Hiccup was staring with malicious intent across the street.

"If it makes you feel any better, I hate him too." Astrid added, coming up behind him. "His name is David B. Zerker."

"Why the middle initial?"

"He always introduces himself like that, and he demands you use his full name when talking to him. It's so stupid. Also, he's Scott's best friend and makes him super paranoid about me."

Hiccup pressed his nose on the glass. "I hate him even more."

"Are you going to eat this hotdog or can I have it?" She asked, holding it.

"Oh, I'm going to eat it. But I'm not going to like it."

"Why bother eating anything if you aren't going to like it?" Tuff asked.

"I mean, I'm going to be morally conflicted about it." He snatched up the dog.

The door dinged as a customer came in.

"Hello!" Hiccup called, his mouth full.

The customer was a big burly man in dusty clothes. He gave a short grin and a nod in reply, then disappeared into the back. By time he returned, Astrid had finished her hotdog. "Find everything you were looking for?"

"Yes, ma'am." He answered, placing two outlet boxes on the counter. "Put this on the tab for Hofferson electric."

She looked up suddenly, "oh, you must work for my Uncle Finn, then!"

He looked mildly surprised. "Finn's your uncle, huh? That must mean you're Axel's little girl."

"…yeah, I'm Astrid."

"How's your old man doing?"

She shrugged sheepishly. "You know…somedays are better than others. All in all, not great."

He simpered. "I know sometime next week, the guys were going to go visit him."

"Aw, that's so sweet! I know he'd like that." She smiled earnestly and printed out his receipt. "You're all set, and thanks again."

"Tell the family I said hi!"

"Thanks! I will!"

The man took his purchase and left.

Astrid felt Hiccup staring at her, but he didn't say anything.

The phone rang and Tuff ran and picked it up, "Home Depot!"

Hiccup snatched the phone out of his hand. "Gobber's Goods, Hiccup speaking, how can I help?…No, that isn't my real name."

—

Astrid peered up at the clock in the ceiling. It was only 2.

"So, date night tonight?" Hiccup asked, sorting a box of pipes.

"Yeah, we're going to Chili's. He hasn't cancelled on me yet, so that's a good sign."

"He's been pretty good this month about not ditching you. It doesn't excuse him from what he's done, but I'm glad he's seen the errors of his ways."

"Yeah, I think that little talk we had really cleared things up."

"Good! I'm glad to hear it."

Tuff suddenly stood and went to the door. Without so much of an explanation, he threw it open and Ruff stumbled in, a blanket covered cage in hand. It banged against the side of the door.

Astrid nearly leapt over the counter and took it from her. "Careful!"

"Sorry Astrid, this thing is just so huge!" She put her hands on her waist. "You owe me for this."

"Yes, I totally do. Thanks for bringing her."

"I might have had ulterior motives in coming here. Who do I talk to about getting my old job back?"

"Oh uh, Gobber's in the back, Ruff. You can go on back," Hiccup provided.

"I'll come with you, two heads are better than one, and the more people begging, the better."

While they left, Astrid rested the cage on the counter and lifted the blanket to look at her bird. "Are you okay Stormfly?"

Hiccup curiously peeked in as well.

The Macaw didn't look very well. She puffed up in anxiety and trembled slightly. There was a bald patch on her belly.

"Is she okay?" Hiccup asked, gauging her reaction.

"No…" Astrid sighed, replacing the blanket. "I knew this was going to happen. I'm never home and my house is super small. My roommate always locks her in her cage…" Astrid placed the cage on a counter by a window so some sunlight could come in. "Gobber's letting me keep her here for the day, then after work I'm taking her to the pet store."

"Shouldn't you be getting her to the vet?"

Astrid put her head in her hands. "I wish I could. But I don't have the money."

"Ah."

"I'm hoping that the pet store will find a buyer for her with a big house and lots of sunlight."

Hiccup was pensive, and wanted to say more, but he didn't have the words.

Stormfly squawked. " _I love you Astrid! I love you!_ "

She covered her face and shuttered. "I'm so sorry dad…" She whispered.

Hiccup came up and touched her arms. "You want to talk about it?"

When she removed her hands, tears were starting to trickle down her face. "Stormfly was my dad's and when he couldn't take care of her anymore, I promised I would take care of her for him. He put a lot of time and patience into training her…now I feel like this is another part of my dad that I'm loosing." She rubbed her face with the back of her hand. "When all my other friends moved on without me, and my life started falling apart, at least I had Stormfly to tell me how much she loved me. She's my best friend."

Hiccup still felt like he didn't have the right to ask, but he did anyway. "What's wrong with your dad?"

"He's…sick." She didn't elaborate anymore.

"Well, what about your mom? I'm sure if you explained the situation, your mom would take care of her for a little while."

Astrid frowned hard. "My mom's…not in the picture anymore."

"Oh…sorry, I didn't know."

"'s okay." She shrugged.

"You can borrow my mom, if you want to. You just have to Skype her in the morning. 7 hour time difference."

Astrid chuckled, feeling a little better. "Thanks Hiccup."

"So…" He looked at the Macaw. "Are you planning on selling her? Or…what?"

"Yeah, it feels kind of sick pawning her off like that, but I could really use the money."

"How much are you thinking you'll get for her?"

She shrugged. "Young, healthy Macaws can go for a thousand dollars. But Stormfly is over 20 years old, and…she doesn't look very pretty right now. I'd be lucky to get a hundred."

"Hm…" He pondered. Then he took out his wallet and flipped through his cash.

"What are you doing?"

"I have forty bucks." He handed it out to her. "But I can bring the other sixty on Monday."

She just stared at him. "You…want to buy her?"

"Why not? I have a big house with lots of sunlight."

"You also have a panther!"

"Toothless doesn't like the texture of feathers."

She eyed him skeptically. "Did he tell you that?"

"As a matter of fact, he did….in a dream."

She grinned.

"But for real, he's never eaten a bird. Ever. And this way, you'll have an excuse to come hang out with me, the most interesting person in the world."

"You…you're serious? You'll take her?"

"Of course! And when things start looking up, you can have her back. I'm just bird sitting."

One moment, he was proudly grinning at his idea, the next, he was frozen to the spot. Astrid had thrown her arms around his neck as she cried into his chest. "Thank you! Oh Hiccup, you have no idea how much this means to me!"

Judging by how hard she was crying, he supposed it meant a whole lot.

"Please don't pay me for her, I can't accept your money."

"Well, tough beans." He stated, before sticking the bills in her back pocket. "I'm willing to pay for her, because I can."

"You're the best friend a person could ever ask for." She leaned up an left a kiss on his cheek.

He turned all shades of pink and took a small step away from her. "I just know what it's like to have a pet that you can't live without. That…they feel more like a friend than a pet."

"Toothless saved your life," she added, "and in a way…Stormfly saved mine." She looked to the floor.

The meaning was not lost on the boy. "Oh."

"Are you sure you want to do this? You don't have to, you know? A parrot is a big responsibility."

"So's a panther! Really Astrid, this is going to be a walk in the park."

Astrid's gratitude poured out of her as she took his hand and squeezed it. "You're the nicest guy I've ever met."

He shrugged. "I can be, on occasion."

"But of course!" Astrid snapped, "you always have to clear it with the lady before selling her!" She went over to the cage and opened it, then urged Stormfly to jump on her arm.

Without much prompting, the Macaw waddled up Astrid's arm to sit on her shoulder and nuzzle her cheek. " _I love you, Astrid! I love you!_ "

"Stormfly, this is my good friend Hiccup."

" _Good friend…Hiccup, good friend_."

"And, he's going to be taking care of you for a while. Is that okay?"

" _Say hello. Good, Hiccup._ " Stormfly leapt from her shoulder and with a single flap, landed on Hiccup's head. " _Good Hiccup. Good head._ "

"I like her." He said, standing very still. "Does she speak a lot?"

"Yeah, dad always left the TV or radio on for her. She's pretty good at being quiet at night though. Unless there's something loud going on."

"Neat."

" _Neat._ "

Ruff, Tuff, and Gobber came out of the back, only to see the duo standing fairly close together, and a parrot on Hiccup's head.

"I leave you alone for 5 minutes." Gobber shook his head. "And don't think I won't look at the security camera footage."

—

Hiccup and his dad always went out for dinner on Saturday night. Stoick had been the one to suggest Chili's and Hiccup hadn't argued. Maybe they'd finally meet this lowlife that Astrid had called her boyfriend.

As a matter of fact, as the waitress ushered them to their table, they passed a lonely blonde in the corner booth.

"Oh, Astrid." He greeted simply.

She perked up instantly. "Oh, hey Hiccup! What are you doing here?"

"I'm here with my dad, father-son bonding night!"

Stoick approached the table, with a big grin on his face. "So this is Astrid Hofferson, the pretty blonde that sold my son another exotic pet."

She blushed slightly and shrugged, "He told you about me, huh?"

"Oh, lass, you have no idea!"

Hiccup nudged him in the stomach with a twinge of pink on his face.

"What are you doing here all by yourself?" Stoick asked, after chuckling.

"Oh…I'm waiting for my boyfriend. He's…he's just running late."

Stoick eyed the empty water cup and nearly empty basket of chips. "Waiter!" His voice boomed over the restaurant and startled several people. "We'd like to join our friend here."

"Oh uh—Mmmmm you really don't have to do that! I'm sure Scott will be here."

"Then we'll just sit with you until he comes. You look lonely."

Hiccup said nothing, just nudged her over to sit next to her. "Just let it happen."

Stoick sat down opposite of them, shaking the table as he did so. It was immediately apparent why Hiccup chose to sit on her side. The waiter hurriedly set places for them.

"Sorry for springing this on you, hope it's not too much of a hassle." Stoick apologized.

"Not at all! What can I get you to drink?"

"I'll have an ice tea."

"Coke, please." Hiccup added.

"And would you like a refill of water, miss?"

"Yes please."

The waiter wrote down his notes and promised to return shortly.

"So, I take it your dad…approved of your purchase?" She guessed.

Stoick laughed, "I come home, and the boy's sitting on the floor, watching SpongeBob, leaning against a panther, with a parrot on his head. He looks at me and goes, "hey dad, I made a new friend today." And the damn bird flies off his head and lands on my shoulder and goes, "this is my home now." I almost had a heart attack."

Astrid grinned wider, just liking the fact Hiccup hadn't stuffed her away in her little cage. "And Toothless likes her fine?"

"Stormfly actually burrowed in his fur, but he didn't seem to notice. I think they'll get along just fine."

She sighed in relief and smiled at the two.

The dinner was lovely, as the conversation always stayed light. Stoick ended up paying for her meal.

But Scott never showed.


	6. June 20 2016

We're getting into finals season for college students. So I might not post chapters on time, but I'll do my best. Or I might have to skip a week. Just bare with me.

—

"Put this on my tab," the man stated, setting down a box of lightbulbs.

"Alright, what's the phone number?"

"Uh, it's under my wife's number," he rattled it off.  
Astrid typed it in diligently, "So…East Town Hookah Lounge is what comes up."  
The man slammed down the light bulbs, probably breaking a few. "THAT BITCH!" He whipped out his phone and made a call while Astrid stood nervously watching him. "You want to tell me why the hell that sleaze-ball's Hookah Lounge comes up with your number at Gobber's?!"  
There was a pause.  
"What do you mean 'we're just friends'?!"  
The man slapped down five dollars to pay for the broken lightbulbs, before storming out of the store.

"What was that all about?" Tuff asked, pinky in his year.

"…no idea."

"Well, if any of these lightbulbs work, we can finally replace the one in the bathroom. I'm tired of pooping in the dark."

Astrid blanched, "We might be better off not seeing the horrors of that room."

It was a pleasant Wednesday evening. It was warm enough to leave the door open so the sounds of summer could be enjoyed.

Hiccup came out of the back room, a collection of PVC pipes under his arm.

"Hey, what're you up to tonight?" Astrid asked him, patting her hands on the counter.

"Well, Fishlegs is coming over and we're going to watch a movie. Why? Did you want to come see Stormfly?"

"That was the plan! What movie?"

Hiccup juggled the pipes, looking between his two friends. Then he finally answered, "Bambi."

Tuffnut burst out laughing. "Wow! What a wild and crazy Wednesday night!"

"Shut up."

Astrid smiled in good humor. "Sounds good to me, I haven't seen Bambi since I was a kid."

"Cool. We'll order some pizza, too. So don't worry about dinner."

Her smiled widened, "like I'm going to say no to free food."

He grinned, "speaking of free food," he rested the ends of the pipes on the floor. "What are you doing on the 4th of July?"

"What day is that?"

"It's a Monday."

"Probably sleeping, among other things. Why?"

"Well, every year my dad throws a party. We invite the neighbors, some of my dad's co-workers, and Gobber's gang. Dad makes some ribs on the grill and we play games and sing songs. And then at night, the 'kids' go out on Eret's boat and we watch the fireworks being shot off the pier."

"Oh wow, that sounds fun!"

"We want to invite you, and also extend the invitation to Scott and your dad."

"Oh…" She screwed up her lips. "I'm almost positive Scott will say no. He always goes drinking with Dagger—er, David on 4th of July. But…my dad might be up for it. Um, is it at your house?"

"Yeah, on our deck."

"Hmm…it might work, if we can get a wheelchair up those front few steps."

Surprise crossed over his face before he turned thoughtful. "I think we can figure something out."

"Cool! I'll let him know. It all depends on how he feels that day."

"We'd love to have you guys. What's better than enjoying the summer with your family?"

She shrugged.

He picked the pipes back up. "One other thing, are you allergic to dogs? Fishlegs is bringing Meatlug over tonight."

" _Meatlug?_ What kind of name is that?"

"You should know by now not to ask that question." Tuff scolded.

Hiccup, on the other hand, loved to let Astrid in on all the nuances. "So Fishlegs has a cat named Meatball, and when he got the dog as a puppy, he named it Meatlog to go with the cat. The guy at Petsmart just spelled the name wrong on the dog tag."

"Oooooh…" she nodded. "While we're on the subject of names…"

Tuff butted in, "Fishlegs bought some Salmon Roe on his first trip to the store. But he stuttered and called them fish _legs_ instead of fish eggs. Therefore, divine punishment."

"Oh that's mean." Astrid admitted.

"Ah, he's over it." Hiccup added, placing the PVC pipes in a box on an end cap. "He likes it now, even his mom calls him that."

"Hello!" Fishlegs looked in the door, just getting out of work.

"Speak of the devil!" Hiccup called with a smile.

Fishlegs frowned, "You guy were talking about me?"

"We always talk about you." Tuff snickered.

"Astrid wanted to know how you got your name."

"Oh, well you see I came to buy fish _eggs—…"_

"Too late, Fishface." Tuff interjected. "We already covered it."

Fishlegs pouted.

"Six o'clock already? Time just flies!" Astrid stated, with a pleasant smile.

"Are you joining us for movie night?"

"You bet! Who doesn't love some animated deer?"

"You know, this is actually your fault." Hiccup added, coming to stand in front of the counter.

" _My_ fault?"

"You had that Disney Princess CD in the car, and I realized I hadn't seen Aladdin in forever. So I told Fishlegs, and we've been going through all the Disney films since then."

"Aww man, if I had known that, I would have joined you guys! Have you already watched Sleeping Beauty?"

"Nope, not yet!"

"Good. That's my favorite!"

"Speaking of Sleeping Beauty," Fishlegs interjected, "we should study for our art history exam."

"Summer class?" Astrid asked, considering she had been out of school for nearly two months.

"We noticed we both had to take a humanities course to graduate, so we decided to take Modern Art and Modernism together over the summer. I'm going to see Picasso's ghost haunting me in my dreams." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Don't get me wrong, art is nice…It's just DADA that kills me."

"Dada?"

"Just Google it sometime."

"I made flashcards." Fish stated, pulling them out of his backpack. "Do…you want to take turns?"

Astrid snatched the cards out of his hands. "I'm bored out of my mind. I'll read the title and whoever can name the artist and the year gets a point. I'll buy the winner a soda."

"I hate competitions…" Hiccup muttered, conceding anyway.

"Summer."

" **Muuuuucha, 1896**." They answered in unison.

"The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood."

"Kyle, 1883." Fishlegs answered.

" _Pyle_." Hiccup corrected.

"Pyle. Right."

"I guess you both get that point." She tallied the points on a sticky note. "The…Rakish Brigantine."

"N.C. Wyeth. 1914." Hiccup declared.

"Christiana's World,"

Fishlegs had it this time. " _Andrew_ Wyeth, 1948."

"A Nude Descending a Staircase."

" **Ugh, Marcel Duchamp….1912**." They both groaned.

"Okay, what's wrong with this dude?"

"So this _dude_ tried to enter a urinal called 'Fountain' into a major exhibition in 1912—" Hiccup started.

"But he was rejected, and his worked ended up getting printed into a magazine instead."

" _Which_ wouldn't've mattered, except now it's considered one of the greatest pieces of art of the 20th century. Up there with American Gothic and Passage of Time."

Astrid tapped the cards against the counter and stated simply, "you guys have this covered. No need to study."

—

At 8 o'clock, Astrid headed over to Hiccup's house while he helped Gobber close up shop. His house had quickly become a second home for her, better than any other friends. Even family.

"Hey there lass," Stoick greeted as she came in. He sat at the kitchen table, various papers around him. "Just get out of work?"

"Yes, sir. Hiccup should be following behind soon." She took her shoes off at the front door. "Are you sure it's okay if I just come in like this?"

"As long as there's a car in the driveway, I don't mind if you barge in. I'm the Chief of Police, Toothless is a decent attack panther. I'm not worried."

"Oh, well, of course there's nothing to worry about. I just meant…isn't it impolite?"

Stoick roared with laughter. "What need do vikings have with manners?!"

"Again with the viking thing…" she muttered.

"You see lass, Gobber, myself, and numerous other business owners have family ties to Scandinavia. You probably do, too."

She smiled. "If the name Hofferson says anything, I might assume so."

His laughter was joyful, and almost hurt.

How long had it been since she last heard her own father laugh?

Quickly recovering, she went to Stormfly's cage to let her out. Only to find that she wasn't in there in the first place.

"Umm…" but before she could ask Stoick where she was, she heard a squawk followed by, " _Astrid's here, Astrid's here._ "

Toothless strolled into the room with Stormfly perched on his head.

Astrid shook her head, "Oh girl, now that you can get around, you're just as lazy as you want to be!"

The bird leapt and landed on her shoulder. " _Laaaaazy bones!_ "

Hiccup and Fishlegs came in 15 minutes later, with pizza.

"Who's hungry?!"

The assembled crowd roared in starvation.

Fishlegs held his tiny dog in hand. A black face surrounded by fuzzy white fur with bugged eyes and lopsided teeth.

"What is _that_?"

"It's a shit-pug." Proclaimed Fishlegs, quite proud of himself.

" _I'll say._ "

—

Astrid forgot how sad Bambi even was. Here she was watching a fawn wander through the desolate snow filled woods and tears bit at her eyes. But she refused to cry.

It was only a movie, after all.

That is, until she heard Fishlegs choke out a sob.

"Are you _crying_?"

"Are you _not_?!" He spat back.

"Oh come on, it's a _deer_."

"It's not just any deer," Hiccup clarified. "It's Bambi's mom!"

"Oh Jesus, are you crying too?!"

"Shut up." He sniffed.

"I'm going to hug my mom and tell her how much I love her when I get home." Fish sobbed.

"I'm going to Skype my mom and tell her how much I love her." Hiccup also sobbed.

Astrid scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Doesn't this make you want your mom?!" Fish accused.

She grit her teeth and looked away harshly. "I never want to see that bitch's face again."

Fishlegs immediately shut up and riveted his eyes back to the screen.

Hiccup on the other hand, tried to pry at the open wound. "What happened?"

"She bailed, and that's all that matters."

Hiccup nodded once, sagely, and pretended like nothing happened.

—

The rest of the movie went well. After it ended, the group continued to talk about trivial things until midnight. Then Astrid declared that she needed to get back home.

She departed the Haddock house with a heavy heart. Every time she left, it felt like she was leaving a sanctuary. Not just because of Stormfly, but for some indescribable feeling. Hiccup's house had a warmth and lightness that she hadn't felt in a long time. Not since she was a kid at home, and everything was still okay.

When life made sense.

 _I kind of noticed something wasn't right_

 _In your colorful face_

 _It's kind of weird to me_

 _Since you're so fine_

 _If it's up to me your face'll change._

Astrid always cranked her music too loud. It helped to block out the anxiety ridden noises and clanking her jeep made.

 _If you smilin', that should set the tone_

 _Just be limber_

 _And If you let go, the music should groove your bones_

 _Just remember_

 _Sing this song with me._

She tapped her other foot idly. Despite it being so late, she knew her roommate was probably still awake. As much as wanted to get home to sleep, she dreaded the confrontation with her. This year alone, she had gone through three roommates, and the new one wasn't panning out to well.

 _Ain't nobody love you like I love you_

 _You're a good girl and that's what makes me trust ya_

 _Late at night, I talk to you_

 _You will know the difference when I touch you._

Suddenly, the air conditioning went out and the 'check temperature' light came on. The gauge read all the way into the red. "Shit…ah…" She rubbed the dashboard. "Please please please get me home…or at least to Meijer to get coolant."

The jeep had other ideas.

As she slowed to a stop at the desolate intersection, the car shook violently, and the steering wheel refused to move. The vehicle came to a stop. No matter how much she pushed the gas, the jeep didn't budge. The engine didn't even rev.

"Great! Fantastic!"

 _People are so phony_

 _Nosy cause they're lonely_

 _Aren't you sick of the same thing?_

 _They say so and so was dating_

 _Love you or they're hating_

 _When it doesn't matter anyway_

 _Cause we're here tonight…_

Astrid turned off the car, silencing JT. She pounded her fists on the steering wheel.

Steam started to billow from the hood of the car, but in the dim green glow of the traffic light, it looked like smoke.

"Oh no…no…" She whispered. Moving quickly, she pulled her keys and grabbed her phone, then got out of the car. All sorts of fluid dripped from the hood. "If there was ever a time to be a car person…" She took out her phone and called for roadside assistance. Of course, this wasn't the first time she had to get a tow, so she was used to the automated messages and prompts you had to go through just to talk to someone. Finally, _finally_ , a real human picked up.

" _Hello, Miss Hofferson?_ "

"Yes! Thank God, I'm stuck in the middle of the road at an intersection, my car is smoking—…"

" _I regret to be the barer of bad news, but it appears that your coverage with us expired._ "

This could not be happening. "…what?"

" _It looks like your mom is the name the account is under?_ "

"That's correct."

" _It looks like she removed the Jeep Grand Cherokee from the coverage_."

"…I just had insurance two months ago. I just had a tow!"

" _This happened last month, you just missed our grace period. If you get in contact with your mom and have her add you back on, we can still cover this incident._ "

Astrid fought to keep her composure, but her voice trembled heavily. "I'm sorry…I don't have anyway to contact my mom…"

" _Alright…_ " The man on the line spoke gently, trying to console her. " _Are you okay? Do I need to call an ambulance?_ "

"No, no…I'm fine." She sniffed. "Just…just shock."

" _Okay, well Miss Hofferson, I can still call a tow truck for you, if you'd like_."

She didn't know what to do. There was no way she'd be able to pay for all of this without insurance. She didn't even know if she could afford _insurance_ on her own. "I'm sorry, I need to talk with my boyfriend first. Maybe we can figure something out."

" _Alright Miss Hofferson, sorry we couldn't help you. Call back if you decide on the tow truck. We can always set you up on your own account_."

"Thank you, I appreciate it." And she hung up.

Completely defeated, she dropped to her rump on the road. Her car continued to smoke.

The phone screen glowed ominously. Scott's picture shone up at her, as she had to come crawling back to him. Every time she thought she could stand on her own feet, life knocked her down and she had to depend on him.

She hated herself for it. When she graduated, she had such a bright future, and she couldn't wait to spoil her parents when she became the best lawyer in New York city.

This wasn't her plans. Thousands of dollars in debt to a man she wasn't in love with anymore. An inexperienced nurse with no parents and a crappy apartment with a psychotic roommate. And now this.

God really liked shutting doors in her face.

Her finger hovered over the phone icon next to his name.

Not this time.

She backed out and went to another contact and dialed him before she lost her nerve.

"' _erro?_ " Came Hiccup's muffled voice from the line.

"Hey, it's me…uh, I'm kind of in a jam."

She heard him spit before he spoke much clearer, " _what kind of jam? Lock yourself out of your house?_ "

"No…My car stalled out…i-it's smoking? I think…and dripping?" She hated the way her voice gave away her fear and uncertainty.

" _Okay, I can come get you. Did you call your insurance company?_ "

"Yeah…I'm not covered anymore. So…I—I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do."

He was quiet on the other end. Then she heard his voice distantly talking to someone. Finally he responded, " _where are you?_ "

"I'm at the intersection of Zoschke and Paw Paw."

" _Well, at least you're not at a busy intersection. Just hang tight, and I'll call you back in a little bit, okay?_ "

"Okay…"

The phone beeped. Now all she could do was wait. She took deep breaths, doing her best to stay calm, but nothing was working. Her hands were shaking now too.

12:48.

Soon her phone rang and she answered it quickly, "Hey…"

" _I'm on the road, you still there?_ "

"Like I could go anywhere…"

" _Are you okay? Are you hurt?_ "

"I'm fine Hiccup, don't worry."

" _I always worry about my friends. Did you call a tow truck?_ "

"No…I—"

" _Good, I took care of it._ "

"…you took care of it?"

" _Yeah, and my dad is sending an officer over right now to report the incident, but you won't get a ticket. Don't worry. He might get there before I do._ "

That warm and light feeling was returning. And she began to calm down.

" _Do you have anywhere to be the next few days?_ "

"No, just work. Scott's busy this weekend."

" _Cool, you can stay with us, since our schedules are almost the same this week._ "

She felt a lump in her throat. "That's super generous…but…"

" _You'd come over a bunch anyway to see Stormfly. And this way you don't have to rely on anyone for rides. I know you're a strong independent woman who don't need no man._ "

Except she did, even if she hated to admit it.

" _Unless, Scott would mind_ ," he offered. " _It is kind of weird to have your girlfriend stay at some random dude's house. I guess you could always stay with him…_ "

Astrid confessed something that she hadn't to anyone else. "I've never been to his house."

" _You…you've been dating this guy for two years, and you've never been to his house?!_ "

"Nope."

" _Why!? How?! That's insane!_ "

She shrugged, but he didn't see it. "We always hang out at mine. Something about a crazy, filthy roommate. Which in all honesty, he can't be worse than mine."

" _Oh yeah, you got a new roommate, didn't you?…Cindy? Sadie? How's that going?_ "

She noticed he was trying to get her mind of the smoking vehicle in front of her, and she appreciated him for it. "She thinks she's a wolf."

" _…what, like a furry?_ "

"No…okay, so…" She laughed, "I'm sitting in the living room right, and she comes up to me and goes, 'Astrid, how do you think of demons?' And I'm like, 'uh, they're bad?' And she says, 'Well, that's a misconception. Demons can be good and evil, I know because I am one.'"

" _Oh nooo._ "

"Then she goes, 'My birth name is Elenor, and I am the princess to the demon kingdom of Bathor' or something like that, 'I am half vampire and half werewolf.'"

" _Oh noooo._ "

"I'm not making this up! Then she says, 'my kingdom is in another dimension and I have come to this realm to warn the humans of a great darkness that is falling. But I don't want to, because I hate humans.'"

" _Oh nooooo!_ "

"And now that she can be her true self, she crawls on the floor on all fours and barks."

" _How old is she?_ "

"27."

" _OHHHHH NOOOO!_ "

She laughed. Her body was relaxed and she breathed a sigh of relief. "So that's what I'm dealing with."

" _Oh man, you have the worst luck._ "

"Coming from someone who only has one leg, I'm going to say that's pretty bad."

A tow truck pulled into the intersection. Though, it was an older one, just a hook on the bed. The driver hopped out.

"The tow truck's here, I'll see you when you get here."

" _Okay, good._ "

"And Hiccup?"

" _Yeah?_ "

"Thanks…for everything."

She heard him hum into the phone before hanging up.

"Alright, lass, let's take a looksy." Gobber hobbled over, dressed in his pajamas.

"Oh hey," she greeted, surprised. "I didn't realize you were my tow."

"Of course!" He preached, "I do a better repair job than half the mechanics in this town!"

"What about the other half?"

He shrugged, "We're on the same level." He stepped over to the car and sniffed the air with a hum. Then he flicked his finger over the hood, tasting it with his tongue. "Yep, just as I thought."

"What?"

"You blew the radiator. Common problem. Shuts off the main computer for safety. Lucky for you, I have a spare radiator and a clear four hours on Friday."

The uncertain ground at her feet suddenly became solid as tears bid release once again. "You mean…you can fix it?"

"Sure! But only because I like you a lot, got it?"

"Would it be weird if I hugged you?"

"No lass, I don't think it'd be weird at all."


	7. July 4, 2016

Sorry for posting late. Finals. And theres a lot of drama in my personal life. Life advice: Never do anything remotely wrong ever, or people will make a petition and try to expel you for it.

—

"Do you even know what you're doing?"

Astrid read the numbers on the screen, the total price of the purchase, but it never left her lips. She knew the number, but the words just weren't there. "It's um…uh…" She blinked a couple times, drawing a blank.

"Look, I want to talk to someone who's not retarded. Where's that other kid?"

It felt like the whole world slowed down. Her cheeks glowed with a quiet rage. "Excuse me?"

"Are you disabled? Is that why you can't pay attention? Let me talk to your manager!"

Alvin entered the store, and the customer began conspiring with him. She could hear the phrases "worst employee," "unbelievably stupid," and "belongs in an institution."

It was then that she realized that who she was looking at. The customer that was slowly ruining her life, the woman with the bleached bangs and black undercut. There was some reason this woman was trying to ruin her life.

"Hofferson, you're fired." Alvin's voice was like a gun shot.

Hiccup stood in the background, shaking his head. "You're such a disappointment. You couldn't even do this simple job. What are you going to do as a nurse?"

Gobber came out from the back room. "No point in going to see your father, you've dishonored him. He doesn't deserve you as a daughter. You're just like your mother."

The floorboards started to shift and open up beneath her.

The last thing she saw before falling was Hiccup's disappointed scowl.

Astrid jolted out of bed with a yelp. Her dream had been all to vivid and real. She laid back on the pillow with a sigh and tried to relax.

Today was her day off, and she sorely needed it. The stress of work and daily life was really getting to her. But today, it was relaxing and kicking back with friends and family.

The thought alone brought a smile to her face.

She turned and looked at the clock.

11 am.

It would take a little to get her dad situated, if he even felt up to the party, so she supposed she'd leave early.

Hopefully, everyone would understand.

—

It was a wonderfully perfect day. A perfect, slightly breezy 72. No clouds in the sky to hide fireworks at night. The deck was filling up. It was a strange crowd, a couple of police officers, a couple of wealthy business owners, and a healthy dose of blue collar workers, all gathered around a grill drinking beer and laughing without abandon. Not an overwhelming number, just a group of unlikely friends.

"So the reason I threw up in front of Jimmy Johns was…well, I do drink a lot. Not while I drive, and I'm over 21!" Tuff sat on a cooler and loudly told an anecdote. Everyone was listening, whether they wanted to or not. "What was different about this time—and there was something different—cause I threw up on myself this weekend, but this time…this time I was walking and right when I started to feel like I had to vomit, you know you do that thing like, HRGH HRGH HRGH, like it's in the back of your throat? Right when that happened, I turned and made eye contact with a lady sitting outside a Starbucks. And then proceeded to keep eye contact with her _as_ I vomited.

"So there she was, drinking her mocha-frappalatte, or whatever they have there. And suddenly she sees the guy across the street just look at her and he just AGGHHHHHHH!" He fake vomited on the deck, the assembled crowd laughing or 'ewing' respectfully. "Can you just imagine what she was thinking? Like, 'oh my god Becky, I was so ugly today, I made a man vomit."

While everyone laughed and pushed Tuff around, the doorbell rang.

Hiccup was the only one who heard it and hurried to the door.

Whatever he was expecting, this wasn't it. Sure, Astrid was there, and her father was in a wheelchair. But he wasn't prepared for Mr. Hofferson to be a shrunken man, sitting blankly in his chair. His neatly trimmed blonde hair and beard had white streaks in it. His eyelids drooped slightly and hid his striking blue eyes.

"Dad, this is my good friend Hiccup. I work with him. He's also taking care of Stormfly until I can get a bigger house."

"Hello sir," Hiccup smiled, "It's nice to meet you."

The man's eyes slid over to make eye contact with him, and his mouth moved, but nothing but a soft mutter came out. He did hold out a jittery hand, though.

"He doesn't talk," Astrid whispered. "Not anymore. But I'm sure he's pleased to meet you."

Hiccup smiled nonetheless and shook his limp hand. Then helped them into his home.

"I'm glad you could both make it." He grinned.

"Yeah, dad was having a pretty good day, according to the nurses."

A squawk came from the rafters before Stormfly landed on Axel's shoulder. " _Hello, Handsome._ "

Astrid smiled, "honestly, as long as he can get out of hospice and be around people for a while, he'll be happy as a clam."

"I didn't realize clams were happy."

On the deck, everyone stopped to look at them when they entered. "Uh, hi!" Astrid greeted, nervously. "I'm Astrid, and this is my dad."

Almost immediately, there was a delighted call, "Axel! Why you son of a gun! You made it!" Followed by several others, "Axel! Why you dirty old bastard!"

"Why, would you look at that!"

"If it ain't ole Hoffmaster!"

Again, Mr. Hofferson said nothing, but something behind his eyes lit up and Gobber came over and clapped his shoulder. "What, has it been over five years now?"

"Wait, you guys know each other?"

Stoick laughed from over by the grill. "Anyone who doesn't know Axel Hofferson must live under a rock! Best electrician in the tri-city area!"

"Wait…" She narrowed her eyes, "Then did you know who I was when you hired me?"

Gobber chuckled. "Of course lass, I recognized you from the photos your dad carried around with him…though I couldn't remember your name…"

It wasn't long until Axel was absorbed into the crowd and everyone began filling him on all sorts of gossip and what changed in their little world.

It was like he wasn't even sick.

"Hey Astrid, this might be kind of rude…" Hiccup began, coming up to her side. "But uh…"

"Parkinson's," She answered shortly. "Usually you get it when you're old, but my dad got it early. Some doctors think it's genetic, others think it's from insulation in walls and ceilings."

"Is that the one where you have seizures?"

"Sort of…it's not like epilepsy, but you lose control of your muscles. My dad sometimes has tremors."

"Oh…so, was your dad always have this?"

She sighed, "As long as I remember, he had to have my mom button his shirts for him. He was fine for a really long time, but had to retire when I was in eighth grade and then had to go into assisted living a year after I went away to school."

"That's why you came back."

"And why I went into nursing." She crossed her arms and spoke softly. "My mom and I never got along, but my dad always treated me like a princess. So I want to do my best to take care of him."

Hiccup looked to her, and then to her father, who was surrounded by his friends and had just a hint of smile on his face. "I think you're doing fine."

"Well soil my britches!" A familiar friendly voice called over from the door. "When Hiccup said he was working with Astrid Hofferson, I thought he was just trying to impress me." A bulky young man, tattoos on his arms and dark hair in a ponytail, approached the group with a smile.

"Eret!" She greeted, "It's been a long time."

"What happened to you? I distinctly remembered you telling me you were going to kick the dust of this crummy town behind you. New York, baby! That's where it's at!"

"Well, life sometimes throws you curve balls. What about you? I thought you were going to the NFL. You were at U of M, right?"

"Like you said, curveballs." He pulled the collar of his shirt down and showed a long scar on his chest. "Open heart surgery. One minute, I'm heading to the end zone and no one can touch me, the next I'm waking up in a hospital a week later. Apparently I had a heart aneurysm right in the middle of the game. I'm not allowed to play anymore."

Astrid grimaced. "That sounds awful."

"Not entirely. I had to change my career path though. I'm going into Wildlife and Fisheries."

"Speaking of wildlife, where's Toothless?"

Hiccup chuckled, "look up."

A long black tail trailed over the edge of the roof, flicking pleasantly.

"Oh. Of course. Why does that not surprise me?"

Fishlegs and another girl approached the group. "What's going on over here?"

"Just a class reunion," Eret answered.

"Oh, Astrid, this is Heather, my cousin…sort of."

"Sort of?"

The dark haired girl gave a short eye roll. "I'm married to his cousin."

"Oh, I get it." She chuckled, "I'm Astrid, we work together."

Heather smiled, like she knew a great secret. "It's nice to meet you."

"So…" Fishlegs rubbed his hands together. "What are you guys doing the 16th?"

"What day is that?"

"It's a Sunday."

"Probably sleeping." Astrid answered, to which everyone agreed.

"Well, I finally finished my campaign, and I'm just itching to try it out."

"Sure." Said Hiccup.

"I'm in."

"Sounds fun."

Astrid, on the other hand, was confused. "Campaign?"

"Dungeons and Dragons." Heather clarified.

"Well," Hiccup added, "we call it Dungeons and Dragons, but it's like a watered down version."

"It's really fun."

Astrid scoffed. "I thought only nerdy kids who live in their parents basement play that."

Fishlegs looked embarrassed, "I do live in my parent's basement."

Stoick called over the crowd. "First round of hot dogs and hamburgers are ready!"

—

After dinner, the assembled group sat in camping chairs, enjoying the sunshine and the company. Toothless had finally humbled himself to come down from the roof and laid at Hiccup's feet.

"Hiccup, every time I see that cat, I'm amazed." A man said. "Even knowing the full story, I just think it's so weird you have a pet panther. Weird in a good way, though. Don't get me wrong."

"Aye, you're telling me." Expounded Stoick. "The full first year we had him in the house, I carried a baseball bat with me everywhere. Never had to use it, or even felt like I would, but I confess I was a little terrified by him."

"So was the mailman." Hiccup added. "In Tanzania, he'd always fetch stuff for us, so it was natural that he'd see the UPS driver come by and go and greet him." He chuckled. "We lost over a dozen packages like that."

"What did you end up doing? Does he still do that?" Asked Astrid.

"No, a woman took over the route, and she loves Toothless."

The conversation changed to politics, then to cars, then to a comfortable silence.

"Well," began Gobber. "My burger finally finished digesting. I think it's about that time."

"Yeah?" Answered Stoick, standing up. "I think you're right."

"What's happening?" Astrid whispered.

Hiccup smirked, "Do you drink?"

"I…yeah?"

"We've got some beer from Founders, apple ale, and cherry cider."

"Uh, I'll take the cherry…what's going on?"

"We're going to do the drinking song." He said cryptically as he also stood.

Stoick returned to the deck with a fiddle in hand. Eret was getting out a guitar.

"You going to join us this year, boy-o?"

"I've been practicing, but I'm just going to play softly until I figure it out."

Hiccup returned with two cherry ciders in one hand and a weird instrument in the other. It was small and had flat metal bars coming off of it.

"What's that?"

"It's a Mbira, a hand piano."

"Oh." That didn't really answer her question.

It looked like everyone else gathered was grabbing something to drink.

Stoick played a few notes on the fiddle. "Hiccup, you're doing the last verse this year. Okay?"

"Alright." He leaned in closer to Astrid, "let it be know that this song is super racist. You have to be drunk to enjoy it."

She smiled uneasily. "Okay…"

Stoick struck the first note and immediately the deck thundered with clapping and stomping.

" _One and two and three and four,_

 _and one and two and three and four._

 _And one and two and three and four,_

 _and one and two and three and four._ "

Everyone sang together at first, swinging there arms and slapping their legs. Then Stoick sang with a rich baritone.

" _Love makes one blind until the fiddle breaks._

 _Old notes are played by a new hand,_

 _It's a tough blow for any fiddler,_

 _He's trying his best, but is both scrawny and bland_.

 _On the hunt for a beard and a mustache,_

 _Should have brought a map for this quest._

 _Zero discoveries are made,_

 _He's trying his best, but he's as bare as his chest._

 _He tries to propose, he's finally brave,_

 _His tongue is wet, but his money is dry._

 _He immediately gets the feeling,_

 _That this something he shouldn't try._ "

Hiccup and Gobber joined in.

" _She started to flirt with more handsome men._

 _So I traded away that cow_

 _and got the fiddle back again._ "

Then everyone, including the women, joined.

" _So now there will be no shortage of women and money._

 _because he traded away that cow,_

 _and got the fiddle back again_."

Astrid found her self starting to clap along. The song was terrible, but very catchy.

" _One and two and three and four,_

 _and one and two and three and four._

 _And one and two and three and four,_

 _and one and two and three and four._ "

Gobber had the next verse.

" _A bachelor like him has to keep his head,_

 _he wants to win her over by singing her a song,_

 _But nothing is going to happen,_

 _is being poor so wrong?_

 _So she slips away to the bathroom with a braver man._

 _One who walks around with his gold in plain sight._

 _Our fiddler was not interesting enough for her,_

 _So he farts in her direction just out of spite_."

Hiccup and Stoick joined again.

" _Because life is like a violin_

 _with the need of a violinist_

 _So I traded away that cow and got the fiddle back again._ "

Astrid joined in on the chorus this time.

" _So now there will be no shortage_

 _of women and money._

 _because he traded away that cow,_

 _and got the fiddle back again._ "

Hiccup's turn had come.

" _Now he's both rich and handsome,_

 _but even that doesn't seem to aid._

 _The fiddle has gotten a different sound,_

 _a hardened heart is the price he paid._

 _This girl is different, of this he's sure,_

 _So he introduces her to his friend._

 _They go to speak for a moment,_

 _Five minutes quickly turned to ten._

 _He sought them out with question,_

 _But what met him behind the door,_

 _made him want to cry out his eyes._

 _They were laying together on the floor."_

The group sang together.

" _I saw her together with my best friend._

 _So I traded away that cow,_

 _and got the fiddle back again._ "

Everyone was singing loudly together.

" _So now there will be no shortage_

 _of women and money._

 _because he traded away that cow,_

 _and got the fiddle back again._

 _One and two and three and four,_

 _and one and two and three and four._

 _And one and two and three and four,_

 _and one and two and three and four._

 _So now there will be no shortage_

 _of women and money._

 _because he traded away that cow,_

 _and got the fiddle back again."_

Astrid laughed after it was over. Really, it was a terrible song but the sheer volume of drunken rhapsody filled her with joy. "Do you guys do this every year?"

"Every year!" Hiccup laughed back.

Astrid looked over to her father who was _clapping_. Her heart clenched at the sight of him moving fluidly. Even if it was a little. She vowed to bring him to more events if possible.

—

Sunset came, and Axel and the adults stayed behind as the kids and Toothless walked down the road to the lake. There, they boarded Eret's boat and jetted out on the lake. Not without lighting a post on the dock first.

There's something about the lake that just soothed the soul. When you're speeding through the waves, you can't hear anything but the deafening wind thundering against your ears. The air around you feels like water parting around you. Each wave the boat cut through, sends a jolt through your body and a pounding in your head.

Then finally, they stopped about a half mile out from the beach. The light house was just a sliver in the distance.

"Are we going to be able to see the fireworks from this far away?"

"Yeah, totally. They're huge."

Toothless hopped up on the back of the boat and stretched out lazily.

"Watching the fireworks has become way more enjoyable since I joined you guys out here." Heather commented from the front. "Scott and I used to go down to Silver Beach and watch there. I mean, it was incredible. But we would get home at like, 3am because they closed traffic down town and you had to detour around the whole city."

"Your husband's name is Scott?"

"Yeah, Scott Jorgenson."

"Oh, my boyfriend's name is Scott too. Scott Loud."

"Oh too funny!"

Everyone fell into a peaceful silence as they watched the sunset on the lake. Everything blossoming into purples and reds.

"My dad and I would go down to the pier on the north side. There's little cement wave breakers cut into the pier that you can climb into. We'd sit in the one directly across from the symphony pavilion. Right in the middle of the 1812 Overture, they'd start shooting off the fireworks. Then after, they play the Star Wars theme. We'd eat cherries and spit the pits at ducks. And we'd wave to all the boats going out to the lake." Then she 'hmph'ed. "It did take forever to get out though, since everyone and their mother tried to leave that way."

"If it makes you guys feel any better," Hiccup began, laying down next to Toothless. "I didn't see my first firework until I was 5. I was on the back deck of my house and I thought the lighthouse had blown up. It was very scary."

"Aw, I love baby Hiccup stories." Heather smiled.

"So…where's your husband, Heather?" Astrid asked, politely.

Hiccup answered. "He and I don't get along, but Heather and I have been friends for a while."

"He had to work," Heather added. "But even if he didn't, I doubt he would have come."

"Well, his loss." Fishlegs commented.

The sun had disappeared over the horizon. But it's light remained.

"In truth, it's been a while since I got to see the fireworks. I always worked downtown, and Fourth of July is one of the busiest times down there. So, I'm kind of excited."

"Come sit up here with me!" Hiccup beckoned.

Astrid laid down on the back, separated from him by Toothless.

"Thanks for inviting us, Hiccup. Today was…really great."

"Yeah? Thanks for coming."

"It's been a while since I saw my dad so active. It was nice. I had a lot of fun."

"Well, you're welcome here anytime."

"Thanks."

And with that, the first firework launched.


	8. July 16, 2016

Writer's block? Finally free to do whatever I want? Distracted by other things? All of the above.

—

The drinking song in the last chapter is a slightly re-written translation of 'Fela Igjen', by Alexander Rybak. I don't know why I forgot to put that in the author's notes on the last chapter…(maybe because I wrote the chapter at 2am in the middle of a party…)

—

"So this lady comes up to the counter and starts putting her stuff up. It was like, spray paint and caulk and sandpaper…stuff like that." Astrid sat at a table in Hiccup's basement. Heather, Fishlegs, and Eret listened and waited for Hiccup. "I was halfway through typing in her items when I noticed the guy before me had left his coffee on the counter."

"People are lazy." Fishleg's shrugged.

"Ah, but that's not worst part! The woman saw where I was looking, reached over, grabbed the coffee and finished it off."

"She didn't!" Heather objected.

"I swear to god, she did!"

"That's the nastiest thing I've ever heard!"

"Alright guys," Hiccup stated, coming into the room. He balanced a laptop in one hand and had a broad selection of snacks in the other. "My mom has two hours free and she's going to join us."

"Join us? But she's in…" Astrid sentence got cut short as Hiccup placed the laptop on the table.

Valka Haddock, a beautiful and wise mother showed on the screen. She smiled. "So you're Astrid? Hiccup's told me a lot about you!"

Said boy in reply blushed. "Soooo does everyone have their character sheets?"

Everyone nodded, except Astrid.

Fishlegs organized his notes then held a blank sheet of paper out to Astrid. "So, since you've never played before, you'll need to make your character."

"Okay."

"What do you want to be? Human? Elf? Gnome?" Hiccup looked pointedly at Heather.

"Well…what do we have?"

Hiccup spoke in a deep Scottish voice, one which Astrid recognized as the voice he used to imitate his dad. "I am Sho'gath the mighty, son of Ogro'Sherk, and wielder of axes." Then he used his regular voice. "I'm a true neutral Orc."

"Okay, what does 'true neutral' mean?"

"It's an alignment. Lawful Good all the way down to Chaotic Evil. It just determines what kind of decisions you're going to make. Are you always going to do the right thing and follow the rules, or are you going to mess everything up?"

"Oh, I get it." She nodded.

"I'm a beautiful elven ranger. And I'm Neutral good." Eret explained, holding up a scribble of a blonde woman.

Valka spoke from the computer, "I'm Magro Thiadim, a gentle giant."

"I'm a dashing rogue named Cazriel, and I have an monkey companion named Steve the Well Trained." Fishlegs frowned right after, "but since I'm leading the campaign, you won't get to see me in action."

Then Heather finished, "I'm a 200 year old mage that looks like a 15 year old boy, and I'm mute, illiterate, and eat rocks."

"You must be fun to play with." Astrid laughed.

" **She's not**." Everyone else responded.

"Well, now I have a lot of options. Can I be anything?"

"Basically."

"I want to be an Angel."

Fishlegs and Hiccup looked at each other, seemingly having a unspoken conversation. "Well, you could…but it's really hard to play as one." Fishlegs finally admitted. "Might I suggest a paladin?"

"Depends, what's a paladin?"

"Do you know anything about Dungeons and Dragons?!" He asked snippily.

She replied, just as snippily. "I know only nerds play it."

"Guess you're a nerd now," Hiccup shrugged.

"You're damn straight."

"Darn. Darn straight." He corrected.

"Okay, well a Paladin is a holy knight. They get a animal to mount that they share an empathic link with. But they can only be Lawful Good. So they always have to do the right thing."

Astrid shrugged. "Doesn't sound too far from real life. I'll do it." Then she snapped her fingers. "My mount can be a giant bird! It'll grasp onto my shoulders and carry me."

"What kind of bird?" Asked Hiccup. "Are you just going to make it Stormfly?"

"No, I can be a little creative." She laughed. "I'll make it a potoo."

The table went quiet. "What's a potoo?"

She pulled out her phone and went to Google. "It's this bird that's really derpy, it looks like a living muppet."

She found a picture and held it up. Sure enough, the bird did look like a living muppet. It had big yellow eyes that bugged out on either sides of it's head.

"That's terrifying." Hiccup cringed.

"His name is Gary."

"Your character?"

"No, my bird." She stated it like it was obvious. "I still have to think of a name for my character."

"Well," Fishlegs began, looking at his notes. "How about Hiccup helps her set up her character while I set the scene."

"Okay."

He cleared his throat and spoke to the rest of the group. "You arrive at the Western dock of the town of Kolasiet. One ship leaves every third morning and returns every third night. To the South, there is a huge hill. In front of you, there are houses, a tavern, a trader who does business inside the tavern, a blacksmith, a church, a jail, and an elder who acts as a healer and a seer.

"To the North, there is an ornate, beautiful manor on the hill. It's large and spectacular, but not as grand as the castle.

"To the East, there is a large castle up on the mountain. It is covered with ivy and there are lights in the windows. The castle is in ill repair, but looks habited. There's a huge rose maze around the outside and heavy iron gates at the base of the hill."

"Good start." Eret commented. "I'll go into town."

Valka and Heather followed.

"People you talk to are pretty down trodden and poor, tell you to go to the Tavern."

"To the Tavern then!"

"Okay," announced Astrid. "I have my character. Now how do I play the game?"

Fishlegs groaned.

Hiccup explained, "it's a roleplaying game. The DM, Fishlegs, will tell the story and you move your character within the story to finish it."

"Okay…" she followed so far.

"As an example," Fishlegs stated, "say you're in the woods and there are trees all around you, except for a cave. Where do you want to go?"

"Well, to the cave. Seeing as it's basically the only place to go."

"Alright, inside the cave is a pile of bones."

"Lovely."

"On top of the bones, theres a dead carcass of a mystical being called a beholder. You see something sparkling in it's eye."

"I want to look at the sparkling thing."

Fishlegs smiled. "You have found beauty in the eye of the beholder."

Astrid scrunched up her nose. "Well, it's been fun, but I'm leaving."

"No! Wait! Don't leave! It was a joke!" He begged.

—

The group had entered the tavern, where they met up with a paladin with a bird mount. Everyone else in the tavern was just as sad and pathetic as the people outside. Maybe even more so, since they were drunk of their asses. Only the trader, Joe, was in a cheerful mood. No doubt hopeful that he'd get some actual business. Joe admitted that he'd been in the town three days, and couldn't wait to get out. Whatever was effecting these people was very serious and if the group of rag-tag fighter's knew better, they'd leave soon too. They bought several drinks and items and talked to the bartender. A goat looking man with a mustache down hanging down to his nipples.

—

"Gobber?"

"Gobber."

—

"Several months ago, we were prosperous. The castle was inhabited by a beautiful and kind fairy. She had magnificence gossamer wings and hair that shone in the sun like gold. Daily, she'd come into our town and grace us with her humble presence. She was also very wealthy, more wealthy then even the mayor, but she was generous and gave gold to whoever needed it, but always with the warning, 'do not take what is not given to you'. But then…one day, the sky turned gray and all the gold that was given to us from the fairy, turned to coal. Great for heating our homes, mind you, but we were left nearly desolate. The mayor spread what wealth he could, but he was also depleted of his riches. An unknown disease spread over the people and took lives. Where once riches flowed, now only sadness like a sprinkler of agony. I'm sure if our gold was restored to us, there would be a handsome reward to those responsible."

At the word 'reward' the group prepared to do what it took to restore the town to it's glory.

And so the group explored the town, talking to various people, including the mayor, elder, healer, and some guards.

Finally, they snuck up to the castle gate.

Two gargoyles sat on the top of the gate, watching them as they approached.

"Halt! Who goes there?" One asked.

The massive orc, with the same amount to tact as brains, spoke, "I am Sho'gath the Mighty and you will let me in this gate!"

"We do not let outsiders in, you do not have the key."

—

Astrid snarled. "Well, then what are we supposed to do? Everyone we talked to made it seem like the Castle was the place to go!" She crossed her arms. "This game is dumb."

Hiccup chuckled. "It's supposed to be a challenge. Or else we'd finish it in an hour."

Astrid checked the time on her phone. An hour and a half had passed, and they were no where near done. "How long is it supposed to take?"

"Two to three weeks, depending." Fishlegs shrugged.

"You _do_ realize I have a life and a job, right?"

"Relax", charmed Heather. "We play three to four hours at a time."

Astrid rubbed her temples. "I've played monopoly games shorter than this."

—

A Paladin, Orc, Mage, Giant, and an Elf sneak into a jail.

Sounds like a joke right?

The guards proved to be a challenge, but the Orc did most of the work. Each one of the prisoners were interviewed, some being more impactful then the rest. The gentle giant, Magro Thiadim, was fiercely disturbed by what a shady man had to say to him. And so he left the town, and wandered onto the beach.

—

It was then that the game reached it's second hour, and Valka had to leave.

The rest of the team had no plans for the rest of the day. Astrid was now invested.

—

The last prisoner they interviewed was a young woman. She had black hair, yellow eyes and a sickly complexion. She explained that she was once the fairy in the castle, but she was ambushed one day and her wings were ripped off. Now the castle belonged to the evil that stole her wings and if the town was to go back to normal, they had to get her wings back.

The fairy gave the group a vile of her blood as the key to get in the gate.

—

"Okay, before we storm the castle, does anyone need to take a break?"

" **Yes!** "

Hiccup stood, picking up his glass. "Can I get anyone something to drink?"

"I'm going to need a hard drink to get through the rest of this." Laughed Eret.

"Me too!" Joined Heather.

Astrid stood as well, "I'll come with you Hiccup. I'm getting a leg cramp."

The rest of the group started chatting about some TV show Astrid hadn't had the time to see yet as she followed him upstairs.

"So…you like this kind of stuff?"

"What?"

"The…lord of the rings, fantasy stuff."

"Yeah, it's okay. I really really like dragons though."

"Dragons, huh?"

"Yeah, if I could. I'd have a pet dragon. I'd have twenty."

She laughed. "You couldn't live here in a wooden house then."

He chuckled along with her. "No, I guess I couldn't."

"But an Orc though? I would never have expected Sho'gath to be your character."

Hiccup snorted. "He's a joke character, don't read too far into it. I made myself true neutral so I could do whatever I wanted. We're fighting an army of zombies to save an orphanage? If there's a reward involved, I'll do it. But if there's a bank next door, you better believe I'm robbing it."

"That's terrible."

"Exactly. I'd never do that in real life, it's just fun to pretend."

Toothless lazily basked in the sun on his back. Stormfly burrowed into his tummy fur. The duo walked past and gave their respected pets pats and scratches, then headed to the kitchen.

"Are you having a fun time?"

"Hm?"

"You seemed kind of annoyed when we started…if you aren't having fun then—"

She slammed her hand down on the table. "I'm having a _great_ time!"

He jumped.

"Look, it wasn't really my cup of tea at first, but I'm really enjoying myself now. Honestly." She made her way over to the fridge and pulled out two beers. "But to be frank…look, I don't want to dump my burdens on you…"

He leaned against the counter. "I'm always happy to be an ear for you. You…don't have it easy. I can't imagine being on my own without the help of at least one parent. And taking care of one, no less."

"I've gotten used to it." She smirked. "Anyway…I don't have a lot of friends. I didn't really keep in contact with the ones from High School and I didn't make a lot of friends at Yale…So, I really appreciate you inviting me to these things. It's nice to kick back with friends, you know?"

"Actually," he smiled. "Fishlegs was the one who extended the invitation to you. He thought you might like the story he was planning."

"Huh. Well, that son of a gun."

"But, you're always welcome to come over, whenever you want. I like you, Astrid."

"I like you too, Hiccup."

—

After a maze of living shrubs filled with man eating flowers and sentient statues, the orc, paladin, elf, and mage finally arrived at the castle door. With the fairy's blood, the door opened to them easily.

Though evil lurked in the walls, the group spread out and searched the castle. Some found weapons, others, spells. But the paladin was the one who found the first journal entry.

"I arrived in the town of Kolasiet. It's quiet, but teeming with life and untapped wealth. Everything seems so bountiful, great food, happy people. It's almost amazing that there are not more people here. I ventured up to the castle, where lush Roses grew around the entrance. Though, as I approached them, the roses came to life and barred my entry. I sat on the bridge and waited for someone to come by, and sure enough, a beautiful fairy with red, silken wings fluttered toward me. I had never seen a fairy before, but she was awfully nice. She has invited me to stay in the castle with her, seeing my interest in the architecture. I believe I will enjoy my stay."

—

"So, who wrote the journal?"

"That's part of the puzzle!" Explained Fishlegs. "You have to figure out who wrote it and why."

She sighed. "Is this part of the main quest? Or is this a side thing that we get to do?"

"Well…it's kind of crucial to know what happened, but you don't need it to beat the dungeon."

She looked at her phone. They had been playing for four hours now. "How many floors do we have left?"

"Besides this one, two."

Her head connected with the table.

—

In the study, the elf found the next journal entry.

"Nearly as soon as I got inside, I started sketching what I could. My hands have never worked that fast. I'm sure the Fairy had never see someone so frantic. She loaned me her study, with the promise that I would make better use of it than her. The Library is one room over and has more books then I had ever seen in my life. I could travel until the day I die, and still not learn as much as I would from those books. The Fairy, Aster, she calls herself, seems to enjoy my company. I presented my inventions and their functions and she was delighted, though I believe she didn't care for the flying machines, since she has such magnificent wings. I might just stay here instead of returning home to Lunesti. I'm sure father would love that. Four years is a long time to be away. I often wonder if they get my letters, they never write me back. I digress. I'm in an enchanted castle!"

—

"Aster?" Astrid deadpanned. "Really?"

"It means 'star,' for your information!" Fishlegs defended. "Besides, I starting writing this before I knew you. So it's not intentional."

"Fair enough."

Another hour passed and Astrid's phone died.

—

On the stairs to the third floor, it was the mage this time that found a piece of paper.

—

Fishlegs passed the notecard to Heather, who in turn gave it to Astrid.

"Wait, why do I get it?"

"Because I can't read!" Heather stated. "Remember?"

Astrid scoffed and read out loud.

"My dearest Aster,

It is with a heavy heart that I tell you I have to leave. I have gotten word that my hometown has been destroyed. I must go and find out for myself. I wanted to tell you in person, but I am a coward. Leaving here is hard enough. I have a strange regard to you, which there is a chain connected to both of our ribs, and with distance the chain will pull and I would take to bleeding inwardly. I will take nothing with me but the key you lent me, with the promise to bring it back soon. Hopefully, I can sustain these wounds long enough to pay my respects. You have often said you do not receive gifts from others, so I leave you with my greatest possession: My heart. Nowhere will feel like home without you. I love you, Aster, most earnestly.

Your faithful friend,

Henry."

Everyone paused to look at Fishlegs.

"What? Henry is a good name!"

Astrid looked smugly over to Hiccup and sang, "Someone's in love with a fairy!"

"You had to use my name, Fish?"

"For the sake of the integrity of the game, yes, I did."

Hiccup chuckled awkwardly, and looked at his phone. "Well, it's 9 o'clock and there's one more floor left. Are we pulling an all nighter?"

Something clicked in the back of Astrid's mind. "Wait…I think I was supposed to do something ate 8…"

"Was it feed Stormfly? Because you already did…"

"No, it wasn't that." She furrowed her brow in thought. "Oh god, what was it?"

Suddenly, she stood, knocking the chair away from her with a clatter. "I was supposed to meet Scott!"

Henry gasped too as he stood. "We'll finish this up next week! You get going!"

"Thanks for understanding! See you guys later!" She nearly ran to the door. "Oh, and Fishlegs. Thanks for letting me join! I had too much fun!"

—

Astrid sped home. Traffic laws be damned, she lived twenty-five minutes away from Hiccup. But she made it in fifteen. She'd never be this lucky again.

She hopped out of her jeep and hurried to the door. "I'm home!" She called to her roommate. "But just for a second, then I'm leaving again!"

She burst into her room and turned on the light, then jumped a mile high.

Scott was sitting on her bed, glowering with a white hot rage.

"What-how—I thought—!" She stammered. She had practiced what she was going to say to him, but they all flew out her ears at the sight of him.

"You didn't answer my texts or my calls." He stated.

"My phone died." She fished it out of her pocket and held it out to him as proof. "I swear to God that I didn't mean to ditch you. I was at a friend's house and we were playing Dungeons and Dragons and—"

He laughed. That was a good sign, right? "You were playing _what_?"

"Dungeons and Dragons…" She repeated, quietly.

The anger was still there, but he looked embarrass as he stood. "You're telling me…that you left me alone in that restaurant, by myself, because you were playing that…that stupid, weird game? Are you serious?!"

"Scott, I swear I didn't mean to do that to you!"

"I can't believe you!" He shouted, startling her. "Do you know how humiliating that was? I waited there for an hour, and you never showed! People kept looking over at me an whispering. It was horrible, Astrid!"

Astrid reddened slightly, hating the feeling of being in the wrong. But she was also a fighter, and in this situation, it wasn't really a good trait to have. Her nose flared. "Now you know how I feel."

His eyes widened. "What?"

She raised her head defiantly to meet his eyes. "You heard me. You've done this kind of shit to me before. But there are times I've waited more than an hour for you to show up."

He ground his teeth. "Me not showing up is different, Astrid!"

"And how is that?"

"I'm very busy! I don't have a lot of time to spare for you! Sometimes, things happen, and I hate having my time wasted!"

She poked his chest, "And you think I _enjoy_ sitting around waiting for you?!" Her hands clenched into a fist as her anger mounted. Honestly, this argument was a long time coming. "You are the most conceited, oblivious, self-centered—"

His fist connecting with her face hurt more then she could fathom. Sure, he was strong. But never before had he _hit_ her. Violence was something she sensed in him, but she never imagined he'd resort to it.

"You don't get to speak to me like that, Astrid!" He shouted, his voice hurting her throbbing head.

She in turn clenched her fist and wound up, preparing to fight back.

But she didn't.

Scott wasn't the type to just take a punch. They'd volley back and forth until someone was unconscious. It had to end with her, so she took a deep breath and let her anger go.

And it was hard.

"You hit me." She stated, plainly.

"You deserved it!" He shot back. "I will not stand here and have you yell and berate me with this is your goddamn fault."

Again, she kept her anger at bay. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. I'm sorry I was late." It felt like poison in her mouth as she spoke.

Hearing her apology, Scott's rage began to subside. Without her fight, he had nothing to feed on and began to cool down. "I…" He looked away from her, "I'm sorry I hit you. You…didn't deserve it." It sounded like he didn't entirely believe it. But she'd accept it.

"It won't happen again," she offered a smile.

"It won't happen again," he agreed. He swallowed thickly and shook his head. "Uh…I should probably go before…well, I'm still kind of hurt…"

"Okay. Maybe it's for the best." She sighed a shaky breath. "Drive safe."

"Yeah…put some ice on that." He shouldered past her and went to the door. "I'll see you later."

"Later," she assured, half-heartedly.

Maybe when later came, he'd realize how stupid and awful he was and really apologize.

It would be nice, but it wasn't realistic.

—

The paladin ascended to the top floor alone. Waiting in the audience chamber, was a werewolf, huge and black.

The knight raised her sword to defend herself, while the beast roared in anguish.

She ran full force, blade at the ready, and delivered a blow to the heart.

What the paladin didn't know, was that the werewolf was an enemy she was never supposed to fight alone. It grabbed her by the legs in one hand, and her arms in the other.

With little effort, she was ripped in half.


	9. Authors Note

So the last chapter got some not so stellar reviews, which is fine, I can handle it. But for those of you who messaged me to tell me how much you hate this story and want me to stop writing, I would just like to say this: I'm not getting paid to do this. I am not catering to you. If you don't like my story, then I'm sorry. Just stop reading it and move on. There's no room for nasty words and insults.

Might I remind you all that this is based on a true story? Might be some food for thought.

When I wrote Roses and Lilies, I challenged myself to create a story to encourage those who have been raped. My challenge for this one was for those who have been or are in abusive relationships. But instead, everyone is just calling Astrid stupid. These bad relationships are not easy to handle or get out of. It makes me so sick that everyone is quick to judge, but if you were in the same exact position, what would you do?

Either way, working on this story has been giving me a bad taste in my mouth and honestly, it's giving me anxiety. I need to step away from it for a while and not think about it. I'm sorry.

In the meantime, I'm going to try to work on my Kingdom Hearts fic, My Kingdom for a Heart.

Thank you for your continued support.

 **Update: I was going to delete this chapter when I finished the real one, but I got over 50 uplifting messages. When I have trouble writing anything in the future, I will look back at this chapter for encouragement.**

 **I'll be back soon. I hope.**


	10. July 17, 2016

Short chapter

—

"Thanks and have a nice day!"

The customer smiled as Hiccup handed him his change and receipt. He was a shy man, quiet and reserved. "Um, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, shoot."

"Well, the thing is…I'm sorry, this is a really weird…I shouldn't really…" He stammered, his face turning red.

Hiccup smiled patiently.

"The manure that you guys sell here…"

"Yeah?"

"Is it safe for human consumption?"

Hiccup was always quick on the draw, and laughed at the joke. In response, the man only looked back in confusion, and seemed a bit offended.

"Uh, I don't know." He replied quickly, "but I wouldn't recommend testing it out."

The man nodded once and ducked out of the store, just as Astrid came in.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Heeeyyyooooo what happened to your eye?!" His greeting turned into an exclamation.

"I got into a fight." She answered simply, trying to hide the bruise behind her bangs.

"With who?"

There was an awkward silence as Astrid headed towards the back room.

"Was it Scott?"

She didn't turn to look at him, but answered simply. "Yeah."

By time she came back into the room, he was no longer behind the counter. Instead, she heard him throwing stuff around in the chaos of the store. She waited at the register, pensive.

A customer came, made a purchase, and then left. Then more silence…

Finally, he stormed up to the counter. "This—This is not okay!"

"Please calm down."

"I can't! My best friend is—you were—he—!"

She smiled a soft smile. "Hiccup, it's really okay. Everything is fine."

"Obviously not if you have a black eye!" He gripped his hair frantically. "This is not okay! You need to leave him!"

She sighed harshly, and Hiccup shut up. "Hiccup, I know you don't like Scott. But please…just leave it alone."

"Okay, yeah I know, but still, like…can you not see how dangerous this is?"

"He's not going to hit me again."

"But how do you _know_?"

"Trust me. I know."

"That really instills me with confidence…"

"Hiccup. Drop it."

He looked away like he was the one who had been hit. "Sorry for being concerned."

"I…I didn't ask you to worry about me."

"That's the thing. It would be easier not to worry about you, but I can't help it. I care a lot about you. And I hate what he does to you…but I'll shut up about it now. Like you asked. Just…if you need anything…" He stuck his hands in his pockets. "The spare key to my house is in the garage. Middle cabinet behind my bike, it's hidden behind a roll of duct tape on the wall."

She shook her head, "Thanks, but I'm not going to need that…do you tell a lot of people where that key is?"

"My friends know. My dad is the chief of police and I have an attack panther. The only incident we had was Tuff breaking in and stealing some of my dad's beer. Only because Meijer was out of Founder's. Anyway, you never know what could happen. So…just in case."

"Just in case." She repeated.

It wasn't much longer until the twins returned from their deliveries. "I'm telling you, in a fight, the King Kong would totally win!"

"The Hulk is smarter than King Kong! He would be able to strategize." Tuff argued.

"Yeah, okay, but also King Kong is 50 bajillion times bigger. He could squish Hulk under his thumb."

"Tell that to Ant Man."

"What?"

"Exactly!" The twins both looked at Astrid and grimaced. "Dude, what happened to your face?"

"It looks like you tried to hammer in a fence post, but didn't have a hammer."

"I don't want to talk about it." She supplied.

Ruff picked up on it immediately, but unfortunately, Tuff did not. "It's like two summers ago when Ruff and I were tubing on the lake, and we hit a rough patch and I accidentally kicked her in the face…my ankle hasn't been the same since."

"You have any plans for tonight?" Asked Ruff.

"Not really…" Shrugged Astrid.

"Want to go clubbing?"

"You mean to Czars?"

"Yeah! It'll be fun! We can have a couple drinks, do some karaoke, have some drinks, flirt with guys and give them the wrong number…come on, it'll be fun!"

"Ah man, I love Czars," said Tuff, a nostalgic grin on his face. "You meet the best people there."

"Like who?"

"Like Thor."

Everyone, including Hiccup who was trying to work, stared at Tuff like he had grown a second head.

"There was a live action Marvel show over at the college last year…" He began. "I went because I got free tickets, and it was awesome. But the harnesses for the flying scenes were broken, so every time a character was supposed to fly off screen, he'd just stare into the lights, and then sprint backstage." He cleared his throat, "anyway, after the show was over, I decided to go to Czars just to chill. And when I got there, low and behold, the actor who played Thor was there, in costume. I don't think he was supposed to be wearing it out and about, but all I know was that we got slammed, and we walked down to the pier singing the Captain America theme song." He looked to the ceiling, woefully. "Sometimes, I can still hear his angelic voice. I'll wait for you forever Thor."

"How much of that is true?" Astrid asked Ruff.

"I dunno." She shrugged.

Astrid contemplated the idea, and looked over to Hiccup.

He was not having a part in this conversation, it seemed.

"Yeah, you know what? That sounds fun. I'll go."

"Great! And Hiccup will be our designated driver!"

"Oh no you don't!" Hiccup stormed back over to the group. "I will not tote around a bunch of drunks at one in the morning! Call an Uber!"

—

It was one in the morning, and Hiccup was wide awake. Maybe he shouldn't have turned them down. What if they hadn't gotten an Uber? What if Tuff thought he was sober enough to drive? What if they got in an accident and died? What if, what if, what if…

He turned over in his bed and covered his head with his pillow in an attempt to stifle the negative thoughts.

His phone buzzed.

Hiccup nearly launched himself off the mattress to grab it. There was a single text from Tuff.

 _vry drink. come get_.

Hiccup was scooting into his shoe before he could even tap out, "I'll be right there, don't go any where!"

Since it was one in the morning, traffic was nearly non-existent and Hiccup hurried downtown. Rain beat down on the road and created an unearthly haze around the streetlights.

Czars was still open and thriving with music and flashing lights. Outside, three blondes leaned against each other, waiting by the curb. Drenched. He should have brought towels.

"Someone call for a ride?" He asked as he drove up in his Dodge Camaro.

"Hiccup~!" Tuff sing-songed. "You're an Uber now?"

"Did you not know you texted me?"

Tuff looked at his phone and then burst out laughing. "I have you in my phone as Uber! Cause you always come and get me when I'm drunk!"

Hiccup rolled his eyes.

"Thanks for coming, Hiccup." Astrid said sincerely, sliding into the front seat.

"Glad to see not everyone is totally schlonkered."

Ruff chuckled. "Don't be fooled. Astrid is amazing at pretending to be sober. She's the _schlonkeredest_ of us all."

"You don't know what you're talking about, Ruff." Astrid rolled her eyes. "I had one drink."

"You had Stella's Punch. 8 shots of tequila."

"I'm fine!"

Ruff leaned over the console in an attempt to make eye contact with Hiccup. "She's super drunk."

"Not I'm not!"

"She's super drunk."

"Alright, alright!" Hiccup called. "What are we doing?"

"Me and Tuff are going to my apartment." Explained Ruff.

"If it wouldn't be too much trouble, could I just stay at your house?" Asked Astrid. "I really don't want to go back to my apartment and face _Elenor_ while I'm tipsy."

"That's fair."

As Hiccup pulled away from the curb, he turned the radio up.

 _She grabs the yellow bottle_

 _She likes the way it hits her lips_

 _She gets to the bottom_

 _It sends her on a trip so right_

 _She might be goin' home with me tonight_

"JAY T! MY BOI!" Tuff nearly screamed. The twins continued to scream along with the lyrics, although, unintelligibly.

 _She looks like a model_

 _Except she's got a little more ass_

 _Don't even bother_

 _Unless you've got that thing she likes_

 _I hope she's goin' home with me tonight_

"Hiccup, I don't know if I've ever told you this, but you have a nice car." Spoke Astrid, crisply.

"Uh, I think you told me that. That night I picked you up after your car broke down. You screamed it actually."

She laughed. "Well, it's a way nicer car than I have."

"I like it. And you're fortunate to even have a car. Can you imagine walking to work?"

"I wouldn't have a car if we just had a bus system around here."

He shivered. "No, trust me. Buses are the worst. Your jeep is fine."

 _Those flashing lights come from everywhere_

 _The way they hit her I just stop and stare_

 _She's got me love stoned_

 _Man I swear she's bad and she knows_

 _I think that she knows_

By time they got to Ruff's apartment, the twins had both passed out in the back seat. It took some serious shaking and yelling to get them up, but they eventually got out of the car and hobbled into the house.

Doubtless, they passed out again on the floor.

 _She shuts the room down_

 _The way she walks and causes a fuss_

 _The baddest in town_

 _She's flawless like some uncut ice_

 _I hope she's goin' home with me tonight_

The rest of the drive was fine and mostly uneventful. Astrid sat relaxed, a small smile on her face.

"You seem to be doing better."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Hiccup had turned the radio off after the twins were dropped off. He was too tired for this stuff now. It was almost two in the morning.

"Is your dad going to be okay with me staying over?"

"Yeah, but he's also not home. He's pulling a late shift tonight."

"Oh. Okay."

Hiccup pulled into the garage and rolled his shoulders. Now that the anxiety of potentially dead friends because of his own laziness had worn off, he was exhausted. He yawned. "Do you need to take a shower or anything before going to bed?"

"No, I'm fine." She mumbled. It seemed that she was tired too. She followed him into the house and quietly down the hall. The house was silent and dark and she had to feel her way by the walls.

They arrived at his room. "I'll find you some comfy clothes to sleep in."

"Thanks…" she slurred.

He turned to look at her, only to find her leaning against the doorframe with her eyes closed.

"You should at least towel your hair dry."

"Hmmm…" She replied. Standing straight, she headed to the bathroom.

Hiccup found an oversized t-shirt and some basketball shorts in the depths of his dresser.

"Alright, I found some pajamas." He announced, coming into the bathroom.

Empty.

He peeked in the guest room.

Empty.

He peeked in his father's room.

Empty.

Every bedroom was vacant. Every _room_ was vacant.

In the living room, Hiccup consulted his pet. "Toothless, did you see Astrid?"

The panther lazily opened his eyes and leapt from his perch on the support beam. He stretched.

"I guess not…I wonder where she could have gone."

He took another lap around the house, "Astrid! Astrid, where did you go?" He chuckled. "I know you're here!"

Then he noticed that Toothless was sitting by the garage door. "What? Did she go outside?"

The cat stood and motioned with his head.

"She's probably cleaning up the seats. She'd do that."

But upon further inspection, the garage was empty as well. At least, at first glance. Toothless trotted over to a piece of cloth on the floor. Astrid's shirt to be precise. Then he noticed the service door was open.

"Cmon, bud. She couldn't have wandered too far." Hiccup beckoned the panther with him out into the rain.

" **Astrid**!" He cried, but to no avail. It was raining harder now, and he could hear thunder in the distance. He hurried into a run, his eyes frantically searching the darkness. " **Astrid! Where are you!? It's not safe out here!** " He called again.

Toothless had darted off into the storm too, hopefully catching her scent.

The dirt road was slick with mud, and he almost slipped more than once.

He heard Toothless roar to his left, and finally, in the glow of a neighbor's landscape light, he spotted a girlish figure. "Astrid!"

She stopped, and turned to him slowly. Normally, he would have been embarrassed to see Astrid, of all people, in booty shorts in a bra, but he was so worried about her and the zombie look over her face.

"Astrid! Are you crazy? It's the middle of the night in a thunderstorm! You're only in your bra—and you've got no shoes! Cmon, let's go back inside!" He took her hand.

Instantly, she started sobbing. "I'm sorry!"

"Oh hey…no…I was just worried." He reached his arms out for her and she rushed to him, screaming and wailing all the while. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Astrid, it's okay!" He soothed. "Man, Ruff wasn't kidding, you are drunk."

"I'm so stupid!" She screamed, clawing at his shirt.

"You're not stupid. A little crazy, but who can blame you?"

"This whole thing is a mistake!"

"I mean, going to a club is always kind of a mistake. The music is loud, people grind up next to you, it costs 8 dollars for a drink…"

"I should have never called him that night!"

Suddenly, Hiccup realized she was talking about something entirely different, and shut up.

"I hate what he's done to me!" She buried her face in his shoulder, smearing her ruined eyeliner even more. "…my life is falling apart…"

"You still have people who care about you, Astrid." He promised, rubbing her back. "Even if it gets hard, we're here to help."

"My life is falling apart!" She screamed it, her eyes screwing shut. "He hit me! Scott hit me! I can't get away!"

"Yes you can!" He pleaded.

"If he goes it all goes! He's the only thing that's constant…"

Hiccup pulled away slightly and grabbed her shoulders. "Astrid, listen to me. You need to leave him. Screw this debt thing you've got going on. You can pay him back with out dating him. He's destroying you. Get out of it!"

She only heaved a broken sob. "Don't yell at me!"

"I'm not…I'm sorry." He ran his hands down her arms in reassurance. "I don't want to hurt you. I'd never do that." Almost painfully, he reached out and cupped her cheek. "I will do whatever it takes to make you happy. So just tell me."

Her shoulders heaved as she fought to breathe. "I don't know! I can't think! I can't—"

Without any warning, Astrid flung her arms around him in a vise grip and planted a firm kiss on his lips.

Instinctually, he pulled away. "Astrid, you're drunk!"

She shook her head, and kissed him again.

The thing about kissing Astrid was this: he knew it was wrong, and in this circumstance, is was _really_ wrong. But it felt right. It felt like the only thing he could do to help. Her hungry lips clamored over his, drinking him in. Her soul cried out for solace within him, and he wanted to give it to her.

Hiccup was vaguely aware of lights next to him before he heard a police siren. He jumped away from Astrid, still holding her arms. He looked frantically over to his dad. Lipstick smeared all over his mouth.

"This isn't what it looks like!"

From the intercom, Stoick's voiced boomed, "this isn't the Notebook, boy-o!"


	11. August 6, 2016

I'm going to finish. It's just going to be a struggle. Also, this summer has been WAY more busy than I intended. Making that mad cash doe.

The only notes I had for the chapter were, 'Chalk Festival' and I had no idea what to do with that…so I came up with this instead.

"I know it's in there, it's under my husband's name, Jeff Sanderson."

"Ok, I'm sorry, maybe I'm spelling it wrong." Astrid was having a rough day. It seemed like 90% of the customers coming in were being buttholes and generally useless.

"It's J-E-F-F S-A-N-D-E-R-S-O-N," the woman insisted.

"Okay, that's what I typed in, and it isn't showing up."

"I know it's there! It was in there the last time I was here! It's under J-E-F-F—"

"Yeah, that's what I typed it!" She repeated, starting to get frustrated.

"Well, obviously, it's not! It should be under J-E-F-F—"

"Can I have a phone number? Maybe I can find your tab that way."

"They never have to put in a phone number, it should be under J-E-F-F—"

"Ma'am, is it possible you didn't pay last months balance on your tab?"

"Why does that matter?"

"Payment is due every 1st of the month, and if it isn't paid, we temporarily shut down your account. That is…unless you need an extension, in which case, I can get my boss for you."

The woman narrowed her eyes at Astrid, then, without warning, took off out of the shop, leaving her merchandise behind.

Astrid sighed heavily and put the merchandise in a basket to be returned.

Hiccup came around the corner, fully immersed in something else and not paying attention to her.

"Hey Hiccup."

He jumped a foot in the air and looked at her with wide eyes. "Astrid! Hi, Astrid…hi."

She rolled her eyes. He had been like this for a while now. It was getting annoying. "I have some stuff for you to put back. The lady just walked out."

"Oh, huh. Any idea who it was?"

She picked up the basket. "Yeah, Jeff Sanderson's wife. She only said her name 80 times."

Hiccup laughed. "Yeah, that's her ex-husband. He doesn't have a tab with us anymore, but every month or so, she'll try to use it to buy stuff."

"What a moron!" She handed over the basket and watched critically as he avoided touching her hands.

"Man, Elvis is really going to town." Tuff commented, door to the shop propped open. The eclectic gift shop a few doors down had an Elvis impersonator performing on the street corner.

"Is that from State Street stuff?"

"Yeah, it's an annual thing. He'll probably be performing at the Chalk Festival tomorrow too." Tuff explained as Hiccup scooted to the back.

"I've been in State Street Stuff probably…once in my life…weird stuff over there. You know they sell bacon flavor lip balm?"

"They have 18 different bacon flavored gifts."

"You counted?"

"I stocked it!"

Astrid narrowed her eyes at him. "Just how many places have you worked?"

"Well, at 10, I started working for a pair of lesbians that were freelance contractors. Then I worked at a pickle factory, then Jimmy Johns, then Bath and Body Works…Meijer, Panera, the Chocolate Cafe down the street…oh, but my favorite place was Macy's."

"Like, the one all the way in South Bend?"

"No, the one they used to have in the mall."

"Oh yeah, I forgot we used to have one here."

"I worked there for a month, and was employee of the month…then they closed their doors." He wiped a pretend tear from his eye. "Oh Macy's…you will forever be in my heart." He sniffed. "I need a moment." And he headed through the doors.

"What about you, Hiccup?" She shouted to him.

There was a sudden clatter followed by, "huh, what?"

"How many places have you worked?"

He peeked around the corner, looking at the floor. "Only here. Oh, and I did have a short internship with a print shop."

"That's cool…did you like it?"

"Um…yeah. It's how I learned how to 3D model and print. And…considering that's what I want to do with my life…" He shrugged. "They just couldn't hire me because of my leg."

"Isn't that being discriminatory?"

"No, in fact it was a very safe idea. It may sound dumb, but I was always on my feet and still pretty new to my prosthetic. I would get done with an eight hour shift and have bruises all over my leg. Not to mention how many times I slipped and nearly broke something…" Hiccup finally looked up and met her eyes. He suddenly blushed and looked away. "But yeah, Gobber lets me sit down anytime I need too. It's nice." And with that, he ended the conversation.

Astrid wrinkled her nose in offense. He was being so childish!

Tuff hurried in through the door, trying to act normal. "Heads up, my dudes."

Not but a minute later, Alvin barged into the room, a scowl plastered in his face. "Hiccup, Astrid, cancel your plans tonight. You're staying late and doing inventory."

"Inventory!?" Hiccup nearly shouted. "It's the Chalk festival tomorrow! We can't stay up all night! And since when do we do inventory?"

"Since we have the chance to get a loan. We just have to have an accurate inventory. I have to have the inventory list turned into the Bank on Monday. So you can either stay tonight and do it, or come back tomorrow AFTER the festival and do it. It's up to you."

"I don't know if we can! There's still two aisles in the back that are just junk!"

"Then, just do your best and fudge it if you need to."

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "But why me and Astrid? What about Tuff?"

Alvin crossed his arms. "That numbskull can't count past 10. I don't trust him. Besides, I thought you two wouldn't mind spending time alone together."

"What makes you think that?" Asked Astrid.

"Aren't…you two dating?"

"No!" Hiccup shouted, much too loud. "Ah, no…we aren't."

"Huh. I could have sworn you were. My mistake. I'll tell you what, if you stay late tonight, I'll pay time and a half."

That idea was much more flattering. "I'll do it." Astrid stated with confidence.

Hiccup sighed, "Well, I guess I will too. Since I'm the one who knows where everything is."

"Great!" Alvin spared a smile for his hardworking employee's. "I'll tell Gobber the plan."

Astrid met Hiccup's eyes and gave him a hopeless shrug, in return he swallowed hard and gave a nervous smile.

Whatever was bothering him, she would find a way to get it out of him.

—

The task was simple, but lengthly. Each shelf had to be counted twice, and then the product had to be logged into the computer. They used post it notes to keep track of their totals.

The first two hours after close passed unfathomably awkwardly.

Astrid had attempted small talk, and Hiccup reciprocated, but it definitely sounded like he was trying too hard to be casual…and ended up not sounding casual at all.

"Okay, I'll bite, what's up?"

"What's up with what?" He returned, trying to concentrate on jugs of insect killer.

"Ever since I had that fight with Scott, you've been super awkward. It's been three weeks."

"Awkward? Who's awkward, I'm not awkward." He began to count over.

"Hiccup, you're a great friend, but a terrible liar. There's obviously something about me that's bothering you."

"Nothing's bothering me! I'm just…thinking about things?"

"Yeah, like I'm going to buy that. Look, since that whole thing with my black eye, you've been treating me different. And I know you don't like Scott, but we're friends. Taking a vow of silence isn't going to do us any good."

"Oh, uh…it's not the black eye that's bothering me."

"Ha! Then something is the matter! I knew it! You can fool me, Hiccup."

"I know…it's just kind of embarrassing. I just don't want to talk about it."

"Well, it's been a few weeks. You should be over it by now."

"It's not something that I can just get over."

"Then let's talk it over."

Hiccup sighed heavily. "You can't make anything easy, can you?"

"That's not my forte, no."

"Okay…I'll tell you. It's…"

Suddenly, the door to the shop rang.

"Did you forget to lock the door?"

"I must have." Hiccup started to head to the front. "Hello? I'm sorry, we're closed." Coming around the front shelf, he halted instantly when he came face to face with a stranger in a ski mask.

"Hi." He stated, swallowing hard. "Looking for some antifreeze?"

Apparently, the man did not share Hiccup's humor as he pulled a pistol out of his coat pocket. "Get on the ground!" He shouted.

Astrid came running at the shout.

"Both of you on the ground!"

Both teens knelt, hands behind their heads as the gunman shifted the weapon between them.

"What're we going to do?" Astrid whispered.

"Shut up!"

They barely even breathed while they waited for instructions.

"Now, one of you is going to go open the safe for me. The other is going to collect the most expensive stuff in the store. Copper wire, electronics, that kind of thing. Now, if either one of you tries anything funny, like calling the cops, I won't hesitate to put a bullet through your head. Understand?"

Both nodded.

Astrid peeped up. "I'll open the safe."

The gunman smiled. "That's a good girl."

Astrid stood quietly, ignoring that bewildered look that Hiccup was throwing her.

She didn't know the combination to the safe.

"Alright boy, get to work. I want to see the best and the most expensive items in this bag."

Hiccup also stood, bag in hand and started walking into the back. He trembled slightly as his heart beat loudly in his ears. His prosthetic sounded unbelievably loud tapping on the ground.

"Don't try to be a hero kid."

Even if he wanted to, he wasn't quite sure how too, considering he had a gun to his back. Best to just play it safe and let his dad review the security tapes later.

Suddenly, he heard a second pair of foot steps approaching quickly, and turned slightly.

Astrid stood, worn shotgun in hand, aimed right between the shoulder blades of the robber. "I'd drop the gun if I were you."

"Didn't I tell you no funny bus—" The burglar turned and halted. Staring at the barrel that was now pointing at his face. There was a silent staring contest between the two as fear crept over both of their faces. He snickered. "Cute, but you don't have the guts."

She cocked the gun with a satisfying click. "Or do I?"

Hiccup recognized the weapon. It hung over the door to Gobber's office. He always assumed it was broken.

However, the robber wouldn't know that.

The man moved his gun from Hiccup's back and pointed it at Astrid's chest. "You shoot me and I'll shoot you."

"Well, that's fair, I suppose." She narrowed her eyes, a tick in her eyebrow. "What do you have? A 9 mm?"

The man didn't respond, just held his gun straight. Indicating that she was right.

"So, you have a 9 mm, which could kill me. But it's not guaranteed. I on the other hand, have a 12 gauge slug, which will put a fist sized hole in you, and will definitely kill you."

She watched as he swallowed with difficulty.

"And I'm not afraid to die."

She heard Hiccup take in a sharp breath, but didn't acknowledge it.

"So, if you think you can shoot fast enough…would you rather go to jail for attempted robbery, or for murder?"

"I'd rather not go to jail at all!" The man looked as though he was about to pull the trigger, but seized up suddenly, and then collapsed on the floor.

Hiccup stood behind him, holding his prosthetic leg in his hand. "That was…terrifying…" He panted.

"Yeah…a little too close for comfort…"

"Mm hmm…" Hiccup continued staring at the unconscious man on the ground. "You know…I was standing right behind him, that slug would have killed me too."

She sighed. "It wasn't loaded. You weren't in any danger." She swung the gun over and the butt hit the floor. There was a resounding 'bang' and a light fixture exploded in sparks. Astrid dropped the weapon and recoiled her burned hand.

"Huh…I guess it was loaded…"

Hiccup, now sans leg, collapsed to the floor on his butt. He curled in on himself and put his hands on the back of his head.

Astrid, however, was not in shock yet, and looked down to the unconscious robber. "Where's the duct tape?"

"Aisle 3." He answered automatically.

Astrid didn't reply, but quietly sought out the tape and bound the unconscious man's hands with it.

She heard him on the phone, still curled in on himself. "Hey, dad?...I'm fine...I mean, there was an armed robber at Gobber's and...no no I'm fine, I promise. Astrid took care of him…well, we both did. He's unconscious." There was a long pause while he listened. "Yeah, we…Astrid has him duct taped." His face was red as he answered, "yeah dad, she is pretty cool." Another pause. "Okay, we're not moving. See you soon."

"Dad's on the way?"

Hiccup finally sat up, making to put his leg back on. He sighed softly and stood. Wordlessly, he went over to check on the door and sure enough, two thin lock picks stuck out of the lock. "Note to self, tell Gobber to add extra security." He shook his head and came back inside.

Astrid set the discharged shotgun and the robber's handgun on the counter, out of the way, but in plain site. Then she picked up the broom and started sweeping up the broken lightbulb.

"I kissed you."

Hiccup's sudden words made her halt and look at him. He was unabashedly looking right back at her.

"I kissed you, and I liked it."

"Huh?"

"The night you and the twins went drinking. You said you wanted to stay at my house…and well…we kissed."

She was quiet a moment, considering. "Just kissed?"

"…there may have been a little tongue." He finally looked away.

"How _risqué_." She chuckled.

"You aren't mad?"

"Maybe I would have been a few years ago. I probably would have punched you. But now…" She seemed to think it over, "what was the situation?"

"Well, you wandered out in the rain, and I had to find you, and when I did, you were crying about Scott, so I hugged you…and then you kissed me…and I kissed you back instead of pulling away like a decent person."

She had a knowing smile on her face. "Dude, I was so drunk that night."

"Yeah…you tasted like booze."

"As long as it doesn't happen again, I don't think we need to worry about it."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded. "I don't remember a lot from that night, but I was so angry and miserable…but then there was a distinct feeling of happiness. Where I just felt good. If you did that to me…I don't think I could be angry."

Hiccup smiled, "So…we're good?"

"You were the one acting all weird! What made you finally spill?"

"I realized that having a gun to my back and seeing you almost get shot was infinitely scarier then potentially pissing you off. And if my adrenaline level was at max capacity, why not just get it over with?"

She chuckled, still calm.

"How are you not in shock after that?"

"I kind of feel like this is a dream right now, even though I know it's not…and we almost died. Holy shit we almost died!"

"There it is."


	12. May 3, 2014

"Oh man, I've had so much free time to work on stuff. But I feel like I'm forgetting something…FANFICTION!" Sorry guys.

Pay attention to the date.

"Hey there, this is Phillis Hofferson. I'm unable to take your call right now, but if you leave a message or text me, I'll make sure to—" Astrid hung up the phone and grit her teeth. This was the eighteenth time she'd tried calling in the last hour, and her mom still wouldn't answer.

She had gotten home from a nearly 12 hour drive, at 10 o'clock at night, only to find the house empty. Barely any furniture and both of her parents were gone. There was no point in calling her dad, considering he couldn't answer…and her mom had to be with him anyway.

Her phone rang. _Finally!_

"Mom! What's the big idea!? Where are you guys? Where is all the furniture!? What's going on!?"

" _Astrid honey, calm down._ " Her mom's soothing voice from the line spoke. " _Your father is at Hanson's right down the road_."

"Hanson's?"

" _You know, the Hospice on Glenlord?_ "

"Hospice! Since when!? I thought dad didn't want to go to Hospice!"

" _Well, he didn't. But…_ " There was a quiet pause on the other line, and Astrid heard traffic.

"Mom, where are you?"

" _Honey…I'm not coming back_."

This phrase was foreign to her, like something she had only heard in bad movies. "Not coming back? What do you—What do you mean you're not coming back!?"

" _Astrid, I'm tired. I'm drained, and there's not much left in your father. So I left. He's in Hospice, and the rest of your tuition went towards his bill. I'm selling the house in a month…so I suggest you find an apartment somewhere_."

"Whoa whoa mom, wait! You spent my college fund? You're selling the house?"

" _Yes, that's what I said_." She has the audacity to sound irritated.

Astrid shook her head and looked frantically around the house. This had to be a joke. Her mom would never—

Who was she fooling?

"Why couldn't you have waited? Were you that much of a coward you couldn't tell me this to my face?"

" _Oh, no Honey…_ " Phillis sounded like she was talking to a dense child. " _It's just that Marcus and I wanted to get going to Vegas before the weekend and—_ "

"Who's Marcus?" Astrid interrupted.

" _Marcus Anders? He's the owner of my salon and spa? You've met him!_ "

"…the dweeby guy with the toupee? But…"

" _We're getting married this weekend!"_

Astrid pulled the phone away from her face. She hadn't even noticed she was crying until she did so. "Married?" She meant to scream in outrage, but shock crushed her throat and no other sounds escaped.

" _Your father signed the divorce papers pretty easily. I mean, he can barely write, but I just explained the situation and he signed. Axel was always so good to me_."

"If he was so good to you, why did you leave him?" There was no hiding emotion anymore. Astrid sobbed into the phone.

" _Astrid, I'm not even 50 yet. I still have a lot of life to live! I want to see the world! Go to Europe…do all the things I couldn't do with your father_."

"Couldn't you have had the decency to wait until he passed away?!" Astrid hated being confronted with her father's mortality. One day, he'd die and she'd be on her own. It would come without warning or foresight. And she hated it.

" _I've been taking care of him for years. I've done more for him then you will ever know. So now I'm done. Don't call me again._ " And with that, her mother hung up the phone.

The anger that boiled up in her chest was unlike anything she had ever felt before. It ripped from her throat as a tormented scream as she chucked her phone against the wall, cracking the screen. All she could do was cry. The tears came relentlessly and maliciously. They stung and burned her eyes and stained her cheeks.

She had to find a job and an apartment in under a week. She had barely any friends or family in the area. She felt so hopelessly alone, that she wanted to die.

She didn't know how long she had been crying before her phone rang again. It was her Uncle Finn.

"Hello?" Her voice was thick with emotion.

" _Hi Astrid, how are you_?" He sounded unbelievably calm. It helped. Uncle Finn had always been eccentric, but he loved his brother and niece.

"I'm okay," she lied.

" _Have you been home long_?"

"About a hour, I think." She wiped her face.

" _Did you speak to your mother_?"

She sniffed, "yeah, she finally answered."

" _Okay, good. I was the one who urged her to explain herself._ "

"Thank you."

Finn's voice sounded a lot like her father's and it made her heart ache. " _You know, you did absolutely nothing wrong_."

"I—I know."

" _One day, she's going to see how much of a mistake she made_."

"I know."

" _And you know you're always welcome to stay with me._ "

"Can I?" She whispered. "Just for a little while."

" _Of course. I'll come get you in the morning, we'll pack up your things and then we can go see your dad_."

"Okay, thank you."

" _Is there anything else I can do?_ "

She shook her head, then realized he couldn't see it. "No…I'll see you tomorrow."

" _I love you._ "

"Love you too." And with that, she hung up the phone.

Truth is, she wanted to talk to someone. Anyone to get her mind off of the situation. So she dialed Ruff.

The phone rang several times and then connected. " _Astrid! Sup, my dude! You never call me. Everything okay?_ "

"Um no, there's something very wrong. Can you come over?"

Ruff made a whining noise on the line. " _I can't…I'm actually still in Washington. But we can talk over the phone, if you want._ "

Astrid sighed. "No…I'll just talk to you went you get back."

" _Okay, one week. Got it? We will have a slumber party and I'm going to braid your hair so right. Okay?_ "

Astrid chuckled. "Okay Ruff, I'll see you then."

" _Ciao_!" And she hung up.

Despite the cheerful encounter, Astrid still felt empty inside. She scrolled through her phone looking for a friend. Most of the people she was acquainted with in high school, she wanted nothing to do with anymore. Then there were a handful of friends she made at Yale. They all lived across the country, not that it mattered. It wasn't like she was returning there anyways.

Then she saw his name.

During winter break, Astrid and Ruff had met up and gone bar hopping together. At one such bar, Astrid had met a man that was handsome and kind. He didn't seem to be after tail, but was genuinely having a good time. They had exchanged numbers and been talking ever sense.

So she sent him a text. "Hey Scott, I know it's late…but are you free?"

His response was almost immediate. " _Yes, what's up_?"

She felt her throat constrict again. "My mom left. I'm…lonely and scared. Could you come over for a little bit and keep me company?"

" _Address?_ "

She sent it to him.

" _20 minutes._ "

"Thank you."

She sighed, relaxing a bit. Though she hadn't seen him in person since before Christmas, the prospect of meeting him again only brought peace and a wonderful thrill.

She walked into the kitchen, taking inventory of what remained. Her mom had taken all appliances, the nice dishes and silverware, and most food. Opening the fridge, she found a gallon of milk with a note on it.

"Astrid, I bought you some Captain Crunch and a couple boxes of Mac and Cheese. I hope that will keep you for the week. ~Mom."

At least she had left some food. Not that she was had any appetite at all.

She continued her walk through the house. Her parent's bedroom was empty, except for a note on the door.

"Astrid, I sold most of your father's clothes. The rest of his possessions are at Uncle Finn's. He is also taking care of Stormfly. ~Mom."

Sadness weighed heavily on Astrid as she realized just how thoroughly planned out everything had been. And yet, she had been left out of all of it. Had no one the curtesy to let her in on her family life? If not her mom, then surely Uncle Finn. With a sigh, she supposed he didn't want to worry her. After all, what could she do if she was several states away?

Her room was mostly in the same state she left it. Save for several boxes placed in the middle of the floor, assumably for her to pack up her junk to be moved. She didn't even even want to think about that chore and walked downstairs.

It wasn't but a moment later that there was a knock at the door. Astrid ran to it, her pain pushed away.

Scott was the type of guy that attracted girls just with his smile. And it was that smile that broke the dam.

"Hi," she managed to whisper.

"Hi," replied, just as shyly.

Then she threw her arms around him. It might have been reckless, knowing that she had only know him for a few months. Regardless, his strong arms and thick torso felt like an anchor of solidarity. And she clung to it like a lifeline. He didn't apologize, didn't ask what happened, didn't say anything at all. He just held her back with a firm grip.

She didn't realize they were moving until she felt the couch underneath her. As the tears flowed, the world became more stable and focused. She was here. It was just her and Scott, and in this moment, everything was okay. She could take an hour or two to breathe. Tomorrow was another day.

She wiped her face with her sleeve and sniffed as he rubbed her back. "I'm sorry, I don't know…I guess I just needed a friendly face."

"It's okay," he stated simply.

"You're the first person I've seen all day, besides the creepy guy at the gas station."

"You drove through Ohio, right?"

She laughed awkwardly. "Yeah…that was rough."

"I bet."

Astrid finally gained the courage to untangle herself from her new friend. "Sorry again, I'm not usually this forward with people."

"It's okay," he assured again. "I kind of figured we were passed the 'just friends' stage anyway."

"Yeah." The idea was nice, but she wasn't sure if it was practical. For now, she would allow the term 'boyfriend' to roll around in her mind. "I know how to survive on my own. So, being on my own isn't that scary. It's just…still overwhelming."

"Yeah, I know it was pretty scary when I got out on my own. Trying to find an apartment that I could afford. Pretty crazy. I didn't have to worry about school though. Now I'm pretty well off, so it's better."

"Yeah…well, I won't really have to either. I have no tuition money."

"Yikes."

She leaned forward, resting her head in her hand. "I suppose I have some money saved up that I could invest some classes."

"For law?"

She shook her head, "No, LMC doesn't really have a 'Law' program. They have a Criminal Justice Program…which I guess I could do, but I'm not that passionate for it.."

"Well, LMC has a pretty good nursing program. You could try that."

"Nursing, huh?"

"Nurses make pretty good money."

"You know…I could probably do that. I grew up having to help with my dad. If I could swing it, I could end up caring for my dad and getting paid for it. That'd be pretty cool!"

Scott seemed to think for a moment. "You know, if you need some help financing this, I could lend you some money."

"Oh…oh no Scott, you don't have to do that."

"Hey, I know you'd pay me back. And it's interest free and it beats having to take out a loan."

"I guess…" She scratched her head. "There's always scholarships, I still have some that I should be able to reapply for."

"Sure."

She could see that he was trying to help and she appreciated it. "But if I do get in a rough spot, it's nice to know that I have someone willing to help me out."

He smiled. "Of course." He glanced around the room. "Sooo…How did your exams go?"

Astrid recognized he was trying to get her thinking about something else. She appreciated it. "They were good. Straight A's."

"Probably had to study a lot for those, huh?"

"I took good notes in class. So it wasn't too hard."

"Good! I was never good at studying. But I ended up in a factory, I'm sure you'll get a great job."

"I sure hope so." Astrid tucked her hair behind her ear, and chuckled. "Actually, my boss at Bath and Body told me that I can't get a professional job with my hair so long."

"Do you think she's right?"

"I mean, maybe? She's a manager at a mall store, so I don't know how accurate her advice is."

Scott turned and looked at her for a moment. "You know, now would be the perfect time to cut your hair."

"Huh?"

"Trust me, cutting it off is kind of giving you a new start. You can be whoever you want to be. I think you'd look better with short hair."

"You think so?" Astrid tugged on her braid and looked at it. "You know? I'll do it."

"Cool."

"I'll get some scissors." She stated, standing up.

"Wait…what? _Right now_?"

"Why not?" She went to upstairs to find her scissors, and he followed, still very concerned. "This is the beginning of a new life, like you said. And I'm going to be more impulsive."

"I have no background in cutting hair." He warned, peaking around the rooms.

"Don't worry, I do. I'll clean up after." Shuffling around her desk, she threw various items in a box, until she found a pair of scissors. She handed him the scissors, leading him into the bathroom. She went into a closet and grabbed a folding chair, resting it in the middle of the bathroom floor. Then she sat down, facing away from the mirror.

"Alright, I'm ready."

Scott muttered to himself, "you drive over to a girl's house in the middle of the night and she wants you to cut her hair."

"You can't get mad. You were the one that brought it up."

"Yeah well…I didn't think you were crazy enough to do it." He lifted her braid and opened the scissors. "I don't know how comfortable I am with this."

"Just hack it off."

"How long do you want it?"

"I don't know! That's why I'm having you do it! For spontaneity."

"Okay, fine…Did you ever watch Teen Titans as a kid?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm going to cut your hair like that one chick with the purple hair."

"Raven?"

"Yeah, that one. Or at least, I'm going to try." Scott lined up the scissors at the base of her neck, and with a long snip, the deed was done.

Her hair poofed out from where it was clustered and touched her ears.

It was very short now. And he kept snipping at the edges in an attempt to even it out.

"Uh, there…um…I think it looks good."

Astrid stood and shook the hairs from her shirt. "Thanks!"

"What do you want me to do with your…um…" he held up her limp braid.

She took it from him and tossed it in the garbage. Then she prepared to turn around.

"Keep in mind," he called out. "You asked for this!"

"I know!" She reminded, delicately.

She turned around, and nearly jumped at the sight of herself in the mirror.

Scott stood in the doorway, gauging her reaction.

Astrid took out a brush and began to comb the tangled locks. It wasn't terrible, just different…and needed an extreme clean up. Maybe more than she could handle. She was just lucky he didn't attempt to cut her bangs.

"Well?" He asked.

"This wasn't…the best idea."

Scott sighed and walked closer.

"If it helps, I think you're pretty cute."

"You do?"

"Yeah." He whispered, leaning in.

She pondered on his closeness for only a moment, before he closed the distance and kissed her.

Her first kiss. Warm, sweet, and wonderful. She felt her chest swell with happiness and desperation.

She didn't know how it happened. One minute, she's mourning the loss of her mother and her hair, the next, she's tumbling onto her bed, lip-locked with a handsome man she barely knew.

She pulled away, her heart pounding in her chest. "I don't think I should do this."

Scott had her pinned with his dark eyes. "Why not?" He asked, kissing her cheek down to her neck.

"I just..don't think I'm emotionally ready for a relationship right now. I'm sorry…I shouldn't have called you over here."

Scott leaned over her, forbidding her from moving from the bed. "Astrid, now is the time to have a relationship." He ran his hand up her side. "Now is when you need it."

Her breath caught in her throat. "I don't know…"

He kissed her again, her mind becoming fuzzy. "Just relax, and stay with me."

"I'm not very experienced with…these things." She gasped, helplessly.

"You'll get used to it."


	13. September 10, 2016

You know how there one chapter you ALWAYS wanted to write when you planned a fanfic? This is the one. Along with another yet to come. I hope you all enjoy.

—

"So, I'm up on the stage, and I've got this…really creepy clown mask on, and I'm jumping around and trying to be goofy." Hiccup relayed, leaning on the counter. "The kids are really liking it and seem to be having a good time. But then when I took the mask off, the demon possessed man in the back stood up and started screaming."

"Oh jeez," Gobber shivered.

The door rang and Astrid hurried in, with wet hair tied up in a bun. "Hey, sorry I'm late. Clinicals went long and an old man pooped on me."

"Oh it's alright," Hiccup turned and gave her a bright smile.

"Hey!" She smiled in return, "you got your braces off! Must feel good."

"It's amazing!" He beamed. "The first thing I had to eat was a caramel apple from Kilwin's, which was amazing."

"So you stated."

He just kept on smiling, and the sight made her heart race. _Bad girl_ , she warned herself.

"Join us," Tuff urged. "Hiccup is telling us his weirdest memory of Africa."

Hiccup cleared his throat. "Okay, so for recap, I'm performing a skit with a mission team from our church, and we're at a church which is notorious for a demon possessed man hanging around."

"Sounds interesting so far," Astrid stated, taking a soda out from the cooler.

"So as soon as I get up for my part, I take off my clown mask I was wearing and the demon possessed man starts shrieking at me. He ran all the way up the aisle and threw a _gallon bag of weed_ at me."

"That's a lot of freaking weed." Tuff stated, nonchalantly, having heard this story several times before. "Did you save any of it?"

"Of course not. I don't actually know what happened to it after that. I just know we sang about 20 verses of 'Blessed Assurance' while the man was just dragged out of the church."

"So that's your weirdest memory of Africa?" Gobber confirmed.

"Probably, at least, as I can recall." He shrugged.

"Must feel pretty weird to be going back soon," Tuff wondered. "You haven't been back since…what, middle school?"

"Yeah, when I lost my leg. But I've kept in contact with my friends there, so it won't be totally weird."

"Wait…when are you going back?" Astrid asked, dread creeping up in her mind.

"Well, I technically graduate in January. So I think we're looking at going back mid-April. So, I've still got nearly 6 months."

"And you are going to work your butt off in the meantime, you hear me?!" Gobber warned, shaking a hook in his face.

"Yeah, yeah."

Astrid hid her disappointment well and pretended to be happy for him. "Well, make sure you let me know when you're leaving so I can take your job."

His fingers splayed across his chest in mock offense. "You wound me, M'lady."

She crinkled her nose. "Hey, I'll give you a pass, but never say that again."

He chuckled.

The doorbell rang and in came a customer. Tuff wandered off to do fake work and Gobber retreated to the back room.

"Hello, how can I help?" Hiccup asked.

"I'm just thirsty." He stated, plainly.

"Oh, well, we have some sodas for a dollar."

"Great!" Said the man with a smile. He studied the cooler, and took out a cream soda. He examined the bottle, and then looked back into the cooler. "Wow! People must really like the cream soda! It's almost empty."

Hiccup was suspicious. He thought he had just stocked that fridge, it shouldn't be anywhere near empty.

"See! Look!" Urged the customer.

Hiccup peaked inside and saw that, indeed, there was one spot missing from the cream soda, belonging to the bottle in his hand. Hiccup just went along with it. "Oh yep, look at that. I guess we'll have to fill it up."

The man smiled, paid for his soda, and left.

"That was…interesting." Astrid supplied.

"You see all types here."

Astrid took a sip of her Rat Bastard Root Beer and sighed. "Thus the curse of retail."

Hiccup snapped his fingers, "that's right Astrid! I was going to show you this thing I discovered earlier this week."

He headed into the back of the store while Tuff grabbed two paint sticks.

Hiccup emerged again with an armful of PVC pipes of all different sizes.

"What's this?"

"A stroke of genius." Hiccup provided, leaning the pipes up against the counter. "Now, each pipe makes a different, distinct sound when I whack them against the counter."

"Like Boomwhackers."

"Yeah! Just like Boomwhackers. Observe."

 _Bum, bum, bum-bum, bum. Bum Bum._

"Hmm…" Astrid pondered.

"I'll play it again."

 _Bum, bum, bum-bum, bum. Bum Bum._

Then Tuff took over, " _Ladies and gentlemen. It's my pleasure to introduce to you…_ " He sang a little as he clicked his paint sticks on the counter. " _He's a friend of mine…_ "

" _Yes, yes I am!"_ Hiccup sang back _._

" _And he goes by the name...Hiccup! Wowoowoooo._ " He howled. " _All the way,_

 _from 20 blocks South._

 _And he's got somethin' special for y'all tonight_

 _He's gonna sing a song for y'all_

 _About this girl._ "

As Tuff travelled to the shelves to drum on them, Hiccup started to bob his head in time.

" _On that sunny day,_

 _Didn't know I'd meet,_

 _Such a beautiful girl,_

 _Walking down the street."_

His voice wasn't perfect or angelic, but it was pleasant to the ear. 

_"Seen those bright blue eyes,_

 _With tears coming down,_

 _She deserves a crown,_

 _But where is it now…_ " He sang as he played the pipes. " _Mamma listen_ …"

It was then that Astrid realized what song he was singing and started laughing.

" _Señorita, I feel for you…_

 _You deal with things, that you don't have to_

 _He doesn't love ya, I can tell by his charm_

 _But you could feel this real love_

 _If you just lay in my…_ "

Hiccup let loose, singing loudly and obnoxiously. Knowing the chorus, Astrid joined in as well.

 _"A~h, a~h, a~arms..._

 _A~h, a~h, a~arms..._

 _A~h, a~h, a~arms…"_

Hiccup made eye contact with her and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

" _When I look into your eyes_

 _I see something that money can't buy_

 _And I know if you give us a try_

 _I'll work hard for you girl_

 _And no longer will you ever have to…cr~yyyyy_!"

Suddenly, Gobber burst into the room, tambourine in hand.

" _Senorita, I feel for you,_

 _You deal with things, that you don't have to,_ " Sang Tuff and Gobber.

" _Deal with things you don't have to,_ " Parroted Hiccup, soulfully.

" _He doesn't love ya, I can tell by his charm,_

 _But you could feel this real love_

 _If you just lay in my…_ "

The door rang and the pipes fell with a clatter as Hiccup was startled. Gobber and Tuff stopped playing awkwardly as Astrid burst into laughter. Hiccup looked quickly to the door to greet the customer, but froze at the sight.

One Scott Lout stood in the door, looking just as startled and confused. "You?" He asked with question.

It only took a half a second for Hiccup to recover. His nostrils flared. " _You!_ " Hiccup responded in anger.

"Wait," Astrid looked between the two of them. "You know each other?"

"Wait, you know him?" Hiccup responded in kind.

"Sure, he's my boyfriend."

Hiccup's eyebrows rose in surprise, before narrowing in anger. "You've got to be shitting me!"

"Now Henry," Scott came fully into the store, with his hands held out in peace. "Let's not get carried away. Can I talk to you in private?"

Hiccup took a massive sigh and nodded wordlessly. He beckoned him into the back room.

Tuff started picking up the abandoned PVC pipes. "That was weird."

"Tell me about it. Whatever Scott had to say must have been really important, since he didn't even say hi to me."

"Plus," added Gobber, "I've never seen Hiccup that angry."

They spoke too soon. The wall to the office was just as thin as it had ever been, and they heard Hiccup loud and clear, screaming so much that his voice cracked.

" **How dare you! How** ** _dare_** **you!? You slimy, disgusting piece of garbage! I could kill you! You go out there and tell her the truth right now!** "

The wall was quiet for a moment as Scott replied.

" **There's no excuse, Scott! You don't apologize to me, you apologize to** ** _her_** **!** "

There was another long break, both voices muffled, Hiccup seemingly calmed down for the moment. But only for the moment.

" **Alright fine! But if you don't tell her, I will. And I shit you not, she will kick your ass harder than I ever could!** "

A moment passed before Scott came back, looking perfectly calm.

"Everything alright?" Gobber asked.

Hiccup stood in the doorway, his face red and still boiling with rage. "Peachy."

"Hey so…" Scott began. "I wanted to just pop in and see you at work. I'm kind of in a hurry, so I'll see you later tonight, okay? I have…something I should tell you."

"Oh, okay…yeah. Tonight." Astrid confirmed.

He leaned in a placed a kiss on her cheek, making sure Hiccup saw the action.

He did, and looked ready to explode.

"Later!" Scott waved.

The room was tense as Hiccup picked up the rest of the pipes and hauled them away.

Astrid called back, trying to ease him. "You know, you have some real musical talent. I think it's cool that you found the right pipes to play Señorita." Her compliment sounded forced and awkward. To everyone around.

"I'm…going to see if I can fix the handle to the freezer," declared Gobber, sneaking away.

"Yeah, and I'm going to do something that isn't here." Tuff stated, taking a can of spray paint and a funnel and heading to the door.

The room was quiet for too long, only an occasional clatter of metal and then a swear. Hiccup never ever swore. And it frightened her.

"Hiccup?"

"What?" He called back.

"Can you please talk to me for a second?"

The young man stormed back to the front, huffing the whole way. He went to the cooler and took a soda out. Then he dropped into one of the high chairs and took a swig. It would have been concerning if it wasn't Root Beer.

"Better?"

"No." He stated, his nose crinkled in disgust.

"How do you know Scott?"

He sighed, and took another drink. "I'm so sorry Astrid, but I promised not to tell. You'll find out tonight."

"Oh." It wasn't like him to keep secrets from her. She was the secretive one.

Maybe a topic change would get him out of his funk. "My dad had a really good day when I saw him yesterday morning."

It worked. Hiccup brightened considerably. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, when I took Stormfly over to see him, he was able to pet her." She chuckled. "And then Stormfly said, 'Hiccup good. Good head,' and my dad actually responded. He said, 'Hiccup good. Good head on shoulders.' It was really quiet, but it was like…he was approving of my decision to let her stay with you."

Hiccup smiled. "I'm flattered. Toothless and I love having Stormfly over. She adds just enough noise to the house make it lively when only one of us is home."

She smiled wistfully, "One day I'll be coming back for her."

His eyes narrowed. "But…what if I don't want to give her back?"

Astrid looked insulted. "You told me where your spare key was, I can get in at anytime to take her back."

He sighed, "well then, I guess it was too good to be true."

"I'll let you visit ummmm….once a month."

"Excuse you!"

They both dissolved into laughter, as the earlier atmosphere disappeared. Or so Astrid thought. Seeing Scott had brought back a lot of ugly emotions in Hiccup, and they were not so easily pushed away. But for her sake, he would pretend that everything was fine. Especially since he loved to see her laugh.

The rest of the day went smoothly. At 5, Astrid helped close the store and then waved goodbye to Gobber and Hiccup and left to prepare for her Saturday night date night.

Before she got very far, however, Hiccup was running after her.

"Astrid!" He called.

She stopped, giving him a weird look. "Did I forget something?"

He approached her, standing toe to toe with her.

"Hiccup?"

He took her hands, and held them gently within his own. Just the simple action was warm and safe. Then he spoke, in a voice so raw she felt the sincerity in her soul.

"I have something I need to tell you. It's so important I just..."

He looked deep into her eyes, and she only saw love and respect. "I…I think I'm in love with you…I know I'm being unfair since you and Scott are together…but I respect myself too much to just pretend that these feelings don't exist. I don't know…I guess I just wanted to take a chance."

She knew he had feelings. That much was obvious, but love? Her heart pounded in her chest as she stared at him. He gave a soft smile, his gentleness actually hurting her. She knew she couldn't reciprocate. He should have known too.

"Hiccup…I'm very flattered…and thank you for telling me. But…I think it's best if…we don't see each other outside of work anymore. I'm sorry." She slowly pulled her hands out of his grip.

He kept his smile, though it turned sour. "Okay," he whispered. "I figured you'd say that. I just…wanted to be honest with you. At least with this."

"Thank you."

"And…if you ever need a safe place, I won't move the key."

"Hiccup…"

"Please, just let me have this piece of mind."

She nodded, tears starting to prick up in her eyes. "Okay, if I ever need help, I'll go to you."

He sighed, finally taking a step away from her. "Good. Good…I'll see you Monday then. Have…a nice weekend."

"You too…" And they parted ways, with the worst pain in their chests.

Hiccup returned to the store, wordlessly. He finished his duties and then went to his car and cried.

Getting in her car, Astrid sat for a moment, unwilling to move. She felt like garbage.

"It's for the best." She told herself, "I did the right thing." With a heavy heart, she turned on the ignition. Her car stalled for a moment and then whined to life. "Me too girl."

Justin Timberlake blared in the stereo. Guitars starting the intro before the heavy bass kicked in.

 _Aren't you something to admire, 'cause your shine is something like a mirror  
And I can't help but notice, you reflect in this heart of mine  
If you ever feel alone and the glare makes me hard to find  
Just know that I'm always parallel on the other side_

The drive was monotonous. She sniffed a few times, trying to hold everything back.

 _'Cause with your hand in my hand and a pocket full of soul  
I can tell you there's no place we couldn't go  
Just put your hand on the glass, I'm here trying to pull you through  
You just gotta be strong_

 _'Cause I don't wanna lose you now  
I'm looking right at the other half of me  
The vacancy that sat in my heart  
Is a space that now you hold  
Show me how to fight for now  
And I'll tell you, baby, it was easy  
Coming back into you once I figured it out  
You were right here all along  
It's like you're my mirror  
My mirror staring back at me  
I couldn't get any bigger  
With anyone else beside of me  
And now it's clear as this promise  
That we're making two reflections into one  
'Cause it's like you're my mirror  
My mirror staring back at me, staring back at me_

She nearly slammed on the brakes as a sudden realization hit her. How could she be so stupid?

 _You are you are the love of my life  
You are you are the love of my life_  
Hiccup had always been good to her. He'd always been there when she needed someone to lean on. He offered a place to stay with no requirements. Even when they just met. His company instantly made her feel better. He didn't hide stuff from her. He listened to her. He held conversation. She never even saw him on his phone when they together. He invited her to hang out with his friends. He never blew her off.

 _Now you're the inspiration for this precious song  
And I just wanna see your face light up since you put me on  
So now I say goodbye to the old me, it's already gone  
And I can't wait wait wait wait wait to get you home  
_She was in love with him too. He made her laugh harder than Scott ever did. His smile warmed her heart. When he was angry, which was rare, she never feared him. The thought of him kissing her, hadn't repulsed her. It thrilled her actually. She was interested in his life, as he was in hers. He stirred feelings within her that she hadn't felt in a long time. Not since she had to grow up.

 _Just to let you know, you are_

 _You are you are the love of my life_

 _Girl you're my reflection, all I see is you  
My reflection, in everything I do  
You're my reflection and all I see is you  
My reflection, in everything I do_

 _You are you are the love of my life_

It didn't matter what big secret Scott had to tell her. Tonight, she was calling it quits. It was about time. He had been there when she needed him, but she wasn't quite sure if that warranted a life of being stood up and potential fist fights. They weren't compatible anymore. And she wondered if they ever were.

She pulled into her driveway with another sigh. Now came the hard part, letting Scott down gently, and making up with Hiccup. She supposed she could just text him, but where was the emotion in a blue screen? No, she'd tell off Scott and then run to Hiccup. This time, she'd kiss him for real.

Astrid walked in the silent apartment. It appeared her crazy roommate wasn't home. It was for the best, she'd rather not have her there if the break up turned into a shouting match.

A break up. How bizarre. She'd never been through one before, much less instigated it. But she'd seen enough movies and TV shows and knew it would probably hurt.

Even if she didn't hold feelings for him anymore.

In her room, she put on pajama shorts and a comfy shirt. Then she slipped into her house slippers and took down her braid. If she was going to do this, she was going to be comfortable. She made some tea and sat on the couch, waiting for him.

The TV was just white noise as she sat there, thinking. She needed to rehearse. He needed to think this break up was totally about him, and not have anything to do with Hiccup. Lord knows what he would do if he figured out Hiccup's feelings. He'd probably break his other leg.

Time marched slowly. It was a long time until 9 o'clock. And it felt even longer that she kept glancing at her phone debating on texting Hiccup. She never did, but the urge was great.

Finally, her phone buzzed with a one word text from Scott.

 _Here._

She stood, taking a deep breath, and went to the door.

Scott waited for her, a pleasant smile on his face. "Hey."

"Hey," she replied, just as pleasant, but not quite so earnest.

His eyes shifted over the apartment. "Roommate here?"

"No, I'm all alone."

"Cool cool…" He seemed to be searching for something, but for what, she had no idea. "Good day at work?"

"Yeah," she nodded, idly. "How do you know Hiccup?"

"Who?"

"Henry?"

"Oh oh…uh he's…" he glanced away from her. "His dad and my dad worked together. We grew up together."

"Oh, in Zambia?"

"No, when he came home from Zambia."

Astrid narrowed her eyes. Hiccup was from Tanzania, and spent his childhood there. Scott was lying.

"Well, you don't really get along with your father, so it makes sense that you haven't seen him in a while," She shrugged.

"Right, Right…" He muttered. He scratched his head.

Both were just vying time to confess.

"Look," Scott started. "There's something I should have told you a while ago."

"Save it." She snapped, scaring even herself. "Look, I've been doing a lot of thinking…I don't think…" She sighed. This was hard. "I don't think we should see each other anymore."

"What?"

"I don't really have feelings for you anymore. And I feel like you don't have any for me either."

He stood blank-faced.

"You don't respect me, you don't pay attention to me, and…you don't put anything into our relationship. When was even the last time we had sex?"

"Do you want to right now?" He asked, half-heartedly.

"That's not the point." She huffed. "I don't want to do this anymore. It's not worth it. Sorry for wasting your time, but I wanted to tell you this in person. I owe you that much."

Scott frowned, an ugly look. Her heart pounded in her chest, waiting to see his reaction.

"And…so I'm just supposed to be okay with you borrowing 3,000 dollars? And just let it go?"

"No Scott, I will pay you back the money. I promise. I promised you before, and I'm not going back on you. I just…don't want to date you anymore."

This did not make his mood any better.

"I knew it. This whole time, you've been cheating on me…with Henry none the less!"

This exasperated Astrid, and her anger flared. "Scott! If I've told you once, I've told you a hundred times! I'm not cheating on you! I was loyal to you to a fault! And you never trusted me, no matter how hard I tried!" Emotion poured out of her at her confession as she begged him to understand.

"Don't yell at me!" He shouted back.

"I'm going to yell at you because you deserve to be yelled at! You—you—!" There were so many things she wanted to call him, but she didn't even know if it was worth it. "I'm done discussing this, Scott. It's over!"

He grabbed her arm and shook her. "You don't get to tell me when we're done! I have invested too much in this relationship for you to call it quits!"

She tried to yank her arm back, but he held firm. "I have just as much say in this as you! It's my life!"

"You don't have a life!" He screamed, shaking her. "You have no family, no friends, you work a dead end job and live in a shitty apartment. You are dependent on me to go to school!"

"I don't need you!" She screamed back, helpless against his strength.

"Yes you do! You have no where else to go! Don't be stupid!"

With a great shove, she pushed him away from her. "I don't need you! **I don't need you!** "

The punch was stronger than the last time. It knocked her off her feet and sent her to the floor. Blood would be coming from her nose soon.

"I told you, don't be stupid. My life is very stressful and I can't always control things…If I lose you, where will I be?"

Astrid got up on her knees, holding her nose. "You think I'm going to apologize after you punched me?" she bit.

Scott replied with a kick to the rib cage, knocking the wind from her. "You're doing this to yourself!"

She fought to stand, though it hurt, and she continued to breathe deep. It was like something snapped. This concern she had for him, this thing that kept holding her back, it was gone.

"My nose is bleeding, and I didn't punch myself," She stated, coldly.

Then he made the face that sent shivers down her spine. He bit his tongue with his lips closed, and jutted out his lower jaw. His eyebrows furrowed and met his pupils. Nostrils flaring, and cheeks puffed. The look of a man with no emotion but rage.

Astrid punched him first.

As he staggered backwards, she darted around him and ran out the door, taking nothing with her. All the while, Scott howled for her, "you broke my nose!"

She sprinted around the house and into the neighbors yard, hearing the door slam. No doubt, he was running after her. "You can run all you want! But I'll always be waiting! This isn't over until I say so!"

She paid him no heed as she jumped the neighbor's fence and dashed into the woods.

His cry came from the distance, raw and visceral. " **You hear me!? This isn't over!"**

His voice echoed behind her as she raced on. The dark of the woods filled with the unknown should have scared her, but she was more terrified of what could have followed her.

The woods were her sanctuary. The intersecting branches were stained glass windows. The assorted stumps were the pews, and the cacophony of crickets and sounds of wild animals were the holy choir.

Eventually, she came to a clearing with railroad tracks. Both directions were lined with trees until they faded in the darkness. It was a cloudy night, and there was no light to guide her.

Just her endless beating heart.

She stood still for a moment, listening for foreign noises. Nothing but crickets. No cracking of sticks, no voices, nothing to suggest human life. She was finally safe. For now at least. She held her side, her ribs tender. Everything hurt. She took the hem of her shirt and ripped it in a thin strip, wadding it up and shoving it in her bloody nose. It would work for now.

But now what was she going to do? She had no phone, no keys, no wallet…not even proper clothes. She should have thought through this better. Where would she even go? Scott knew about Hiccup. That would probably be the first place he'd look for her. But then again, maybe he didn't know where he lived. Then there was always the fact that Hiccup had a panther and, well, Stoick, to be sure. The more she thought about it, the safer the Haddock Home looked.

She closed her eyes and tried to imagine the area around his house. Where were the railroad tracks? She imagined the tunnel, and then the main road. Across the street there was a cemetery, and bordering that, she could have sworn there were tracks. If not, then she'd come up with a better plan.

So she picked the direction she assumed was South, and started off.

It was a cool night, at least. Not too cold and not too hot. And rain didn't seem likely, for this, she was thankful.

On and on she traveled. Her feet hurt already from standing all day, and this was not helping. Her house slippers at least kept her from stepping on something sharp…for now at least.

Eventually, the woods ended and the city came into view. Gobber's Goods was not too far, though at this hour, no one would be there, and Gobber had updated the security system anyway, there was no way to get in. It didn't matter, so she pressed on.

As she crossed the bridge over the river, the water calmly lapped against the metal wave breakers. It was almost peaceful, and she took a seat, just for a moment to catch her breath. From here, she could see a break in the clouds in the distance over the lake, where the stars could be seen ever so slightly. Like a light at the end of a tunnel.

She didn't spend much time on her break as she clambered to her feet.

After another hour, her trek led her to border a busy road. It was unlikely that Scott would be looking for her here. If anything, he would be waiting at her house for her to return. But before her brain could process this logic, her eyes saw headlights coming around the corner and she dropped to the ground to hide in the grass. Her lungs filled with rapid breath as she covered her head with her hands and didn't dare to open her eyes, lest it would give her away. The car was long gone, but the anxiety remained. With shaky legs and careful eyes, she stood and continued down the tracks.

It felt like years. Her feet began to drag the longer she walked. Tears bit at her eyes from the pain. Surely, her slippers weren't doing her any good, but she wore them to keep from getting splinters.

Then she saw it. The cemetery. A cool fog fell upon it, and gave it a haunted look. She waded in, and let the cool dew seep through her slippers and cool her raw toes. The graves looked inviting, surely the residents would allow her to rest for a moment. But, she'd be home soon. And then rest.

In the tunnel, every step echoed and she tripped several times. She was just so tired.

Then finally, she saw the wonderful view of Hiccup's house. She made her way up the driveway, tossed her slippers into the garbage and threw herself into the service door, as she had seen him do a hundred times before.

"Please tell me he really didn't move the key," She wondered aloud. Both cars were inside, and she was thankful. On the side of the garage sat Hiccup's bike, still unfinished. She went to the cabinet behind it and found the hidden key behind the roll of duct tape. She kissed it. "Thank you, Hiccup."

Inside the house, she tiptoed quietly down the hall, no signs of stirring occurred. At the foot of the bed in the guest room, a spare pair of pajamas sat waiting for her. They looked amazingly soft. She took them and went to the bathroom. The light went on and she winced at the brightness, and then the train wreck that was her face. The punch that had landed had left a ugly bruise that spread over her nose and a bit around each eye. She turned on the faucet and rinsed her face, watching as the water beneath turned yellow. The skin was tender, as the skin on the bridge of her nose had split open. She was just lucky it wasn't broken. Cupping the water in her hands, she gulped it down. The coolness soothed her dry lips and swollen tongue.

She stripped off her dirty shorts and ripped shirt and turned the faucet on the bathtub. In the closet, she found a wash cloth and some bandaids. What she really wanted was to take a full shower, but she didn't know if she had the energy. As she eased her feet into the warm water, they stung as they were rubbed raw. She used the wash cloth to wash the mud from her arms and legs.

Finally, she dressed her nose with the bandaids. "Alright, good enough. I'll find that bag of peas Hiccup keeps around and ice this." She threw on the pajamas and turned off the light. "Then bed." She smiled at the idea. Bed sounded so good.

She climbed the stairs to go the kitchen, only to see a light on. She prayed that it was Stoick, or someone had just left it on, but it seemed that luck was not on her side.

Hiccup leaned against the counter, a bowl of cereal sitting in front of him. He looked up when she walked in.

For a moment, they just stared at each other. He obviously hadn't expected her, especially since she had said she didn't want to see him anymore. But the bruise on her face spoke volumes.

She hadn't prepared what she was going to say, how she was going to rectify this situation.

"Why…don't you have a seat on the couch? I'll get you some peas." He finally said.

She smiled slightly, and followed his instructions. As she sank into the cushion, she felt her legs starting to throb.

"Are you hungry?" He called.

"Yeah…"

"I'll make you a sandwich."

"Thanks."

She peered over to Stormfly's cage, to see her sleeping peacefully. Toothless leapt down from his beam and trotted over to lay at her feet. Astrid just sat idly and waited.

Soon enough, Hiccup came back and handed her a bag of frozen peas and the sandwich, and then took a seat next to her. He sat crosslegged, facing her.

Both ate their food quietly, still not sure how to start a conversation.

Hiccup finished his Captain Crunch and set the bowl to the side. "So?"

"So…what?" She asked.

He didn't really have to guess, but assumed Scott was responsible for her nose. "Why did he do that?"

She glanced away. "I broke up with him."

"Oh, so he told you about…you know…"

"He didn't say anything. I just…do you remember when you asked me if I wanted to marry Scott?"

"Uh, I think so. Wasn't that like, months ago?"

"Yeah, but…I kept thinking about it. And after…what you said yesterday, I was driving home and I realized that you treated me better then Scott ever had, and we're not even dating."

"But Astrid…"

"Even before you _liked_ me."

He swallowed, a little pink on his cheeks. "I've kind of always… _liked_ you."

She grinned.

"So…he just punched you?"

"Something you might not know about me Hiccup, is that I'm a fighter. When I get angry, I get _angry_. But Scott's the same way, so I had to learn to control my anger. Tonight he was saying all sorts of crap and accusing me of stuff, so when he hit me, I just…snapped. I broke his nose and ran out of the house without my phone or keys and ran here."

"Wait wait wait wait…you _walked_ here?"

"Yeah…I didn't know what else to do. I don't have your number or address memorized…"

"How long did it take you?" He asked, resting a warm hand on her knee.

She glanced to the clock on the wall. "Well, it's 2 o'clock now…so four hours?"

He shook his head.

"Why are you up?" She questioned.

"Oh, I just couldn't sleep. I was…really worried about you. You never texted me, so I assumed that Scott chickened out of our promise…"

Astrid furrowed her eyebrows, "Are you saying whatever Scott had to tell me would ruin our relationship?"

"I hoped it would."

Astrid looked at him skeptically.

"Not for my sake, but for yours." He clarified.

"Alright, well, I think you better tell me what this mysterious secret is, since I refuse to talk to Scott ever again." She considered a moment. "Do I have to get tested?"

He blanched. "Um…maybe?"

Her eyes widened.

"You see…Scott's my cousin."

"Wait…your cousin?" Hiccup could see the wheels turning in her head. "Like…as in your cousin Scott that's married to Heather?" Her voice broke.

"Yeah…" Hiccup nodded, softly.

"How long have they been married?"

"Three years."

"Jesus Christ…" Astrid pulled her feet up and leaned her forehead against her knees. "This whole time…he was scared of me cheating on him. But he was cheating on his _wife_! On Heather!" She shuttered. "I feel sick! How could I do that to her?"

"Astrid, you couldn't have helped it. You had no idea. The best thing we can do is call her in the morning and tell her what happened. I think it's best if we tell her as soon as we can."

Astrid nodded, the sickness in her stomach not quite disappearing.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm so mad. And disgusted…Hiccup, I slept with him. I helped him cheat on Heather!"

"Again, you aren't to blame, because you didn't know. Heather is really kind, she'll understand. Why she even married Scott in the first place, I'll never know." He shook his head. "Are you going to throw up?"

"No, probably not," She assured. "It's over now. Just a terrible nightmare that I don't have to worry about anymore. So let's change the topic, or I'm going to feel guilty for the next month."

Hiccup wasn't looking at her. "Why did you come here, after what happened earlier? I thought that you have…" He trailed off, not knowing how to put it into words.

"You said you wouldn't move the key." She said simply. "This is the only home I have." She smirked slightly, "Having Toothless and the Chief of Police around were a plus."

He smiled back, finally looking her in the eye. "You feel like this is home?"

She nodded. "It's the first place that felt like home after my dad went into hospice. I feel safe and I can relax. It's warm and inviting, and I don't feel uncomfortable at all…your dad treats me like his kid."

"He has a tendency to do that." He laughed.

"And Hiccup?"

"Hmm?"

"Back when I said that I broke up with Scott because of his treatment of me…that was only partly the reason."

"Oh?"

She sighed, "when…you said you loved me…it made me really happy. Happier then I had been in a long time, and I realized that saying no was the biggest mistake I could ever make…because maybe we could have been together a few hours sooner."

Hiccup's eyebrows raised clear into his hairline. "You mean…?"

Astrid reached out and touched his face, gently. She gazed at him, a pained look on her face. "Did you cry? When I said I didn't want to see you anymore?"

"A little," he admitted, sheepishly.

"I'm sorry for the heartbreak."

"It's alright. I expected it, honestly. You are fiercely loyal, and I appreciate that about you."

Astrid was leaning in. "I wish I had met you sooner in my life. I have a feeling things would have been better."

"Maybe you should have applied at Gobber's instead of Bath and Body."

She giggled, a pleasant sound. Like she was finally at peace. She gazed down, in thought, and then took a risk.

Carefully and slowly, so he could move away, she moved one leg over him, and then straddled his legs. She rested her hands on his shoulders, seeking approval. He didn't seem to protest, as he rested his arms on her waist in return. He swallowed hard.

Then she leaned in, closing her eyes.

"Wait," he begged softly.

She did, seeing his conflicted face.

"Should we be doing this?"

"What do you mean?"

Hiccup tried to take his hands away from her, but ended up clasping her arms instead. "You just broke up with Scott. I don't want to be a rebound. I don't want you to only be doing this to feel better…I want you to do this because you actually care about me."

"Oh Hiccup…" she gasped. "Thank you." She leaned in and pressed her forehead to his. "It means a lot to me that you would think about that, but I promise, I want this."

"You do?"

She bored her eyes into his, daring him to compromise. "Hiccup, I love you. I really really love you."

His lips twitched into a smile. "Kiss me then."

It started out slight. Just a touch of lips. Both hesitant, but eager. Soon she turned her head slightly and dove her fingers into his hair. He reciprocated by pulling her closer and wrapping his arms around her.

Then, her heart cried out for his, and he answered it. Several heated kisses later, he opened his mouth slightly, as did she and a little dance of tongues began. It didn't last long, as Hiccup pulled away with a loud smack.

"Wow," he breathed.

"Wow…" she repeated.

"It's a lot better now that you're sober," He teased.

She could have berated him, but she chose not to, and kissed him soundly again. She was tired, and ached. She knew she looked like a mess, but the way Hiccup looked at her made her heart beat with joy and excitement.

A throat cleared behind them.

The couple pulled apart in haste, hair ruffled, and out of breath.

Stoick stood behind them, not impressed. "Why is it that I keep finding you two playing tonsil hockey at wee hours of the morning?"


	14. September 16, 2016

"Heroin, you?" The customer had rolled up his sleeve to show a bruise on the inside of his elbow.

Hiccup squinted his eyes in skepticism, then realized he had a similar bruise on his arm from a routine blood test a few days prior. "…uh...hemoglobin."

The customer nodded with respect. "Dope." He bought his screws without another word, and left.

Astrid came in not too long after, smiling like the sun.

"You're in a chipper mood." He observed.

"Every day is a good day when I get to work with my _boyfriend_." She sassed, approaching the counter.

"You've said that every day that you've come into work this week."

"And I still get to work with you, so I'm not lying." She leaned in a smooched him swiftly on the lips.

His cheeks reddened. "I suppose I can't ever get tired of it."

She giggled.

"Hey, your bruise is healing really nicely."

"Thanks, I used a little bit of cover up on it though. So, it actually doesn't look this good."

"Well, I still think you're hot." He admitted.

Astrid laughed loudly, startling him. "Thanks!"

Hiccup leaned on the counter, relaxing. "I only have two rows left in the back to organize, and today's been really slow."

"How long do you think it'll take you to do those?"

"…like, two months."

Astrid snickered. "My poor boy."

"Oh will you please _just get a room_!" Tuff's voice echoed from an unknown location.

Hiccup startled suddenly. "Tuff? Where are you? I thought you were out on a delivery?"

"I'm in the ceiling." He answered.

"How…?" Hiccup wandered from around the counter, looking up the whole time.

"Go to the very back of the store, and look in the top left corner of the ceiling."

So Hiccup hurried to the back, careful to not trip in the very back, then he saw on top of a very high shelf, there was a small door to the attic with a ladder leading up to it.

Astrid peered around the shelves, trying to watch Hiccup. Though soon, all she heard instead where loud thumps and bumps, and Hiccup's occasional voice. "When did you have time to bring a TV up here?"

"Careful Hiccup, don't step on the red squares. I found that out the hard way."

"This is amazing. I wonder if Gobber knows this is up here?"

"I hope not. Then he'll just throw his garbage up here."

"I don't think he'd be able to fit through that door."

Astrid called up to them, "one thing to consider, is that I can hear everything you're saying."

"There is no privacy in this building." Hiccup agreed.

The door rang, and in came a familiar face. Though, Astrid had not seen her since before the incident with Scott. So she wasn't quite sure how this interaction would go.

"Oh, hi Heather."

"Hi Astrid," she smiled, and it was genuine, but sad.

"Heather's here?" Hiccup called.

"Yep."

Heather glanced at the ceiling in question. "Is that Hiccup?"

"Yeah, him and Tuff figured out how to get into the ceiling."

Heather snorted a laugh. "How goofy."

"Is there something I can help you with?" Astrid asked politely. "Unless, you just wanted to talk?"

"I just want to talk." Heather nodded, looking to the floor.

Astrid gestured to the cooler, "You can have a soda, if you want. It's on me."

"Oh thanks, but I'll pass this time." Heather gnawed on her lower lip.

"How are you doing?"

"Better, actually." She admitted with a sigh. "Now that I kicked him out of the house, and the divorce petition has been filed, I can actually breathe. I don't expect the next year will be easy, but at least I won't have him sneaking around and stealing my money."

Astrid frowned, sickened, "he stole from you?"

"Somewhere to the tune of 6,000 dollars. We had an agreed monthly allotment, since I'm the sole breadwinner…"

Astrid spoke up, "I thought he worked in a factory?"

Heather scoffed. "Is that what he told you?"

Astrid crossed her arms and considered, "yeah, now that you say that, it makes plenty of sense. He said he was a wielder and often had to work late hours to fix his co-workers job…" She screwed up her face. "My dad worked as an electrician all his life, which is a much cleaner job, but his hands were always cracked and stained with something. To the point where I never saw my dad with super clean hands."

"What's your point?"

"Scott always had baby smooth hands. Like…he never did a days work. And I never questioned it."

"Funny how things are falling into place." Heather smirked. "So, this money would just disappear. And there were no purchases to prove where it went. Like, if I had come home and there was a new TV in the living room, I would have been pissed, but at least I could see where my money went. And I could enjoy a TV."

"That's my fault." Astrid admitted, "he let me borrow money for school. I always intended to pay it back, but I haven't been able to yet."

"For nursing?"

"Yeah, but only 3,000. And I will pay it off. Especially since it's yours."

Heather smiled, "I know you will Astrid. I won't rush you. That makes me feel better at least. I'm glad he wasn't spending it on hookers."

Astrid shrugged. "Well…there still is 3,000 missing."

Heather frowned. "God, I'm such an idiot."

"Why do you say that? Heather, he's a con artist. I went to Yale and he STILL fooled me. He's cunning and charming, and…" She sneered, her anger overwhelming her for a moment. "Don't feel bad about trusting your husband. He's the one who should feel guilty."

Heather sighed, solemnly looking around. "Scott was my high school sweetheart. I thought I knew everything about him. They say when you get married, things change. I just…wasn't prepared for how much change was going to happen."

"Heather…did he ever hit you?"

"Did he hit _you_?"

Astrid nodded, gesturing to her face. "This was his handy work."

Heather shook her head in disgust. "I'm so sorry, Astrid. I had hope that his violent tendencies would have stayed a secret. I mean look, I'm this successful independent woman, but I'm being bullied by my husband. It's shameful."

"I bet that's why he bullied you. He was scared of you leaving because without you, he wouldn't have anyway to get money. When I broke up with him, he said something about not having any control in his life, except over me."

"That makes sense." Heather nodded. "I think my therapist said something like that too."

"Oh, I'm glad you're getting therapy. I would too, but again…the money thing."

"You should come with me!" Heather suddenly exclaimed. "At least a few times! It'll help, I promise! And hopefully, you'll be able to go into your next relationship with trust again."

Astrid grinned, looking away. "Well…I don't think that's a problem."

Realization dawned on her before she screamed in joy. "Hiccup, you dog! It took you long enough!"

"Hey! Be nice!" The ceiling shouted back.

"What are you two even doing up there?"

"McHales Navy is on." Tuff replied.

"Isn't that show from like…the 60's?"

"The only channel the antenna picks up is TvLand. I think Golden Girls is on next."

"Hey Tuff, as comfortable as these bean bags are, maybe we should get some real chairs up here." Hiccup replied.

"Nah dude, bean bags are where it's at."

Astrid steered the conversation away from the boys. "So any idea what he's going to do now? Not that I care…"

Heather chuckled. "I gave him a 1,000 dollars to live off of. Part of the divorce appeal claims that he has to pay it and the other 6,000 dollars back."

"But, he gave me 3,000 for school. So I should owe you that money."

"No, because he took it without asking and used it to get into your pants. If you can pay me back, great. If you can't don't worry about it. You have plenty to worry about right now."

"Would it be weird if I said you're my best friend?"

Heather burst into laughter, tears coming to her eyes. "I thought we were already besties!"

Astrid grinned wide enough her cheeks could rip. "Frieeennnnddddd."

Heather eventually calmed down to continue. "Anyways…Scott moved back in with his parents. And knowing his dad and his influence, he'll weasel his way out of the money." She rolled her eyes. "I guess the laws don't apply to you when your dad is a judge."

"Wait, his dad is a Judge?"

"Yeah, Judge Jorgenson. Didn't you know?"

Astrid shook her head. "I had no idea. Scott never told me anything about his family. He said he hated them and cut them off. So I never pressed him about it." She rested her head in her hands. "He lied to me about so many things. I don't think the man I knew ever existed."

Heather leaned forward on her elbows. "If it makes you feel any better, he lied to me a lot too."

"You mean, besides having a girlfriend?"

She scoffed, "no kidding. Did you know he had another girlfriend too?"

" _What?_ "

"Yep. Her name is Mala, and I contacted her yesterday. When I told her she was dating my husband, she actually hung up the phone, and then called me back, saying she vomited."

"Can you give me her number? I want to talk to her too."

"Sure, totally."

"Just letting her have someone confide in and know she's not the only one dealing with this…might help." She shrugged.

Suddenly, loud singing came from the ceiling. " _Thank you for being a friend! Down the road and back again! You're heart is true, your a pal and a confidant!_ "

Astrid and Heather looked at each other before bursting into laughter.

—

After work, Astrid and Hiccup rode together South, to Hanson's Hospice.

"I'm kind of nervous." Hiccup confessed.

"Why? You've met my dad before."

"Well, yeah…" Hiccup shrugged, keeping one hand leisurely on the wheel. "But that was before we were dating. Things are different now."

"It's not like he's going to yell or hit you…" She chuckled, in a dark way. "He can't."

"Well, I'm not afraid of that."

"Then, what are you afraid of?"

He shrugged again. "I don't know."

They pulled into the parking lot, Hiccup's nerves giving him jitters. It wasn't the first time he was seeing Axel, sure. But it was the first time he was seeing him in Hospice. It almost cemented the fact that the man was indeed dying. It was only a matter of time.

Astrid greeted the woman at the front counter, and they were waved through. The building was very modern, and reminded Hiccup of his house. Lots of open windows looking out to patios where bird feeders waited. Birds and butterflies were painted on the walls. Despite the nature of the institution, it only felt warm and soothing.

Astrid lead him down a hallway, knowing the directions well. "When we go in, I want you to hold my dad's hand. It might be kind of weird at first, but he likes having contact."

Hiccup nodded in understanding.

They came upon an open door, where she knocked softly. "Dad? I have a visitor for you."

Mr. Hofferson reclined in a bed, slightly propped up. The blinds were open, letting in sunlight. The room seemed to be personalized, with posters of the Cubs and Michigan University pinned up. He had a warm looking purple quilt draped over his legs. The radio played 80's music while a slideshow of pictures played on the TV.

Astrid approached the man and kissed his forehead. "Hi Daddy," she whispered. "I brought Hiccup with me." She sat down on the bed and beckoned him forward.

"Hello Sir," Hiccup greeted, clasping his hand. He sat in the nearby chair.

Axel Hofferson never responded.

"So, we have something important we want to tell you." Astrid bounced a little in her seat. "Like two weeks ago, I broke up with Scott. And now Hiccup and I are dating." She grinned.

There was still no reaction from Axel.

"I'm sorry sir," Hiccup began, "I would have asked your permission first…but it was kind of spur of the moment. But I really love your daughter and I will do everything I can to make her happy."

The only response was Axel's hand tightening around his.

"I'm sure you're insanely curious to know what happened…" Astrid began her tale, skipping the part where she ran for her life from Scott.

Hiccup sat quietly, absently rubbing the man's hand with his thumb. It had only been a few short months since the 4th of July, but the man looked drastically different. A lot skinnier, and much less alert. Like he was fading away. It brought a lump to his throat. He reached his free hand out and rubbed Astrid's leg in a comforting way.

"…and then he kissed me, and his dad happened to walk in at that very moment." Astrid laughed loudly and warmly.

A light danced in Axel's eyes as he watched his daughter laughing brightly.

Hiccup was touched too, loving the joy that she openly displayed. It wasn't often that she was so happy and carefree, and even in this situation, talking to her withering father, nothing seemed to get her down.

There was another knock on the door. A man looking like a healthy version of Axel stood in the doorway with a guitar case. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Of course not, Uncle Finn." Astrid grinned. "This is my boyfriend, Henry."

"Hi," he responded, "everyone calls me Hiccup."

Finn narrowed his eyes in skeptisim. Then he whispered, "is 'e the one that came after your mum?"

"No, that was Scott, we are no longer communicating."

Finn seemed significantly relieved and grinned at the boy. "Well then, it's nice to meet you! Two years, and I never met that Lout. How long have you two been seeing each other?"

"Nearly a week," Astrid provided.

"Only that long and you two are already making goo-goo eyes at each other?"

Hiccup grinned.

"Well, we met in April. And we work together, so we see each other nearly every day."

"Wait wait wait," Uncle Finn interjected, "is this the one that's watching Stormfly?"

"Yep."

"Well! I was wondering when you were going to date him!"

Astrid shook her head, "did everyone know about Hiccup's enormous crush on me except for me?"

Hiccup glanced away, with a smile, "It was pretty obvious."

Finn set his guitar case on a chair and pulled out his instrument. "I'm glad you're both here. Friday is music night, and I need some nice strong voices to sing with me.

Hiccup said nothing, but imagined that squawking that was a ritual on car rides. He just smiled patiently.

Astrid turned the radio off while Finn started playing. "You kids should know this song, if only the chorus. So just sing what you know."

Hiccup started tapping his foot in time, not recognizing the song yet.

" _I looked out this morning and the sun was gone._

 _Turned on some music to start my day._

 _I lost myself in a familiar song._

 _I closed my eyes and I slipped away…"_

Uncle Finn was really getting into the music as he bobbed his head.

" _It's more than a feeling, when I hear that old song they used to play._ "

At the chorus, Hiccup and Astrid seemed to 'ah-ha' at the same time and echoed, " _more than a feeling!_ "

" _I begin dreaming,_ " Uncle Finn took over while Hiccup and Astrid just sang/screamed, " _more than a feeling!_ " over him.

" _'Till I see my Marianne walk away,_

 _I see my Marianne walkin' away_."

Hiccup had spent so much time giving Astrid a place in his family, he didn't even think about what little family she had left. Not to mention her absent mother that she had yet to mention.

" _So many people have come and gone,_

 _Their faces fade as the years go by._

 _Yet I still recall as I wander on,_

 _As clear as the sun in the summer sky._ "

Just in this moment, holding Mr. Hofferson's hand and singing his heart out, he felt truly connected to her family too. He felt like he belonged.

" _It's more than a feeling, when I hear that old song they used to play_."

" _More than a feeling!_ "

" _I begin dreaming…"_

 _"More than a feeling!"_

 _"'Till I see Marianne walk away,_

 _I see my Marianne walkin' away."_

—

They stayed for another hour or so before Astrid admitted to being hungry. She kissed her dad and Uncle Finn, while Hiccup gave them both firm handshakes. Then, they left the hospice hand in hand.

Outside, Astrid gave a long sigh, her eyes downcast.

"You okay?"

"I will be…it's just…" She shrugged, and then looked over her shoulder at the hospice.

"You miss him." He guessed, playing with her hair.

"He's still there. I just…can't really access him."

"I'm sure just you showing up and giving him kisses and laughing does wonders for him."

She nodded. "It's…hard sometimes. But after this semester, I'll have my Associates, and then I'll get my certification, and then…" She grinned, "I already talked with the Hospice director, and he said he'll hire me to be my dad's nurse."

"Wow! Astrid that's so wonderful!"

"Of course, I'll have to help the other patients on occasion. But he'll be my primary patient."

He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. "That's so awesome. I'm so proud of you!"

The elephant in the room moved a little closer, though neither acknowledged it for a moment. The sun was setting quickly, and the parking lot was plunged into a sacred gold.

Finally, Hiccup voiced his concerns. "So…you'll be quitting Gobber's then. Huh?"

She nodded, silently. "But then, you will be soon too. Right? Since you're leaving for Africa in April."

"Yeah."

The weight of the future sunk on their shoulders for a moment, dragging their moods down. The unasked question cycled through both heads, raising anxiety and doubts.

What's going to happen to _us_?

Hiccup turned suddenly, swooping in and leaving a lingering kiss on her lips. "I love you."

"I-I love you too. But where did that come from?"

He grinned. "Just a reminder. Where did you want to eat?"

"Uh, I was just going to go home and make some Mac and Cheese."

"Nah, I'll take you out. And I'm paying."

"Huh?"

"Astrid, _honey_ , we're dating. That means I get to pamper you. So just tell me where you want to eat. Is there anywhere that Scott would never take you?"

She thought for a moment. "We only ever went to Papa Vino's and Chili's."

"Then…I'll take you to Grand Mere."

"What? That place is expensive!"

"I can afford it. Come on, let me treat you."

Smiling, she slipped her hand into his and let him lead her away.

—

The song is More than a Feeling by Boston, in case you didn't recognize it.


	15. October 26, 2016

Y'all best buckle up, these next few chapters are going to be…rough.

—

"Hey daddy?" A customer and his small daughter were checking out from Hiccup.

"No, you can't have candy." The father responded.

The little girl curled her tiny fingers over the edge of the counter, and leaned forward and backward. "It's not that. I just wanted to say...I love you."

"I love you too sweetie, but you still can't have candy."

Hiccup snickered as he typed in the total.

"Hey daddy?" She asked again.

"Yes?"

"I don't love you anymore."

Hiccup had to cover his mouth to hold back the laughter as the little girl looked stalwartly at her father. It seemed that she was not bothered in the slightest, nor was he. He thanked Hiccup calmly, and walked out with his purchase. The little girl looked back at Hiccup with a frown.

"Maybe next time."

After the customer left, Hiccup glanced up to the clock in the ceiling. His brows furrowed slightly. Astrid was now 20 minutes late for her shift. It was concerning, to say the least.

"Still not here?" Gobber asked, coming out of the back room.

"It's so unlike her. She's late sometimes…but never this late. She'd call if something happened."

"Aye. Unless she's in midterms."

"No," clarified Hiccup. "Midterms were last week. I don't think she had class today at all."

"Do you want to call her?"

Hiccup nodded, taking his phone out. He had no notifications waiting for him. He put the device to his ear and waited.

After several rings, it finally connected. Astrid was sobbing, "oh Hiccup! I'm so sorry! I totally forgot—"

His heart dropped into his shoes and he was on high alert. "It's alright. What's wrong? Are you okay?"

She was quiet on the line for a long while before she coughed out another sob. "No, I'm not okay."

"Where are you? I'm coming for you."

He could tell that she was trying to rein in her emotions. "I'm at Hanson's…it's my dad."

Hiccup looked up to Gobber, who was watching in interest.

Astrid was whispering, like she didn't want to admit the truth. "He died, Hiccup. He's gone…" She dissolved into sobbing again.

"Axel died…" Hiccup half whispered to Gobber.

Gobber shut his eyes sadly, and sighed in pain. "You go ahead. I'll close the store."

"What?"

"Don't worry about it," said Gobber, shooing him off. "Just go."

Hiccup nodded in gratitude. Then he addressed Astrid, "I'm coming now. I'll see you in a few, okay? Then you can tell me everything."

There was a small whine from the phone as Astrid confirmed.

Hiccup spared a look at Gobber, who was returning to the register with a bank bag. He looked overwhelmingly sad, but at peace.

"You okay, Gobber?"

"I will be, lad. I will be." The boss confirmed, "Axel was a dear friend, but when I saw him at the party in July, he was such a shadow of his former self. I'm just glad he isn't suffering anymore."

Hiccup nodded in understanding.

"Get going lad, she needs you."

Without another word, Hiccup fled from the store.

At Hanson's, Hiccup entered into the lobby, and told the secretary he was there for the Hofferson family. She sent him in with a sad smile.

The end of the hallway seemed so far away, but he could hear her crying from here. The rest of the building was eerily quiet, as if the whole world had stopped to mourn with her. He nearly ran, if not for politeness, and came to a room in the center of the wing. It bore chairs and couches, and a little kitchenette. It was warm and inviting, and held none of the sterile Hospital white that was so painful to him.

Astrid sat in a chair, her head in her hands. Uncle Finn sat next to her, his arm around her in comfort.

"Astrid…" Hiccup spoke just loud enough.

She lifted her face quickly, which bore the marks of crying for many many hours. Before she even finished standing, he had closed the distance between them and crushed her to him. She buried her face into his chest, wiping all tears and snot onto his shirt. He didn't mind. "I've got you, it's alright. Just let it out."

Her fingers curled almost painfully into his back, but he showed no signs of discomfort, only petted her hair and kissed her head. He murmured sweet nothings into her ear.

Finally, after several minutes, she looked up at him and pried her arms away. "I-I'm sorry, Hiccup. I didn't mean to…I'm a mess."

" _Honey_ , it's fine!" He assured. "I'm here for you, and if you just want me to hold you while you cry, that's fine." He kissed her cheek quickly.

Astrid choked a little more, trying to catch her breath and wiped her face. "He wasn't supposed to go this soon. One of the nurses found him early this morning." She clenched her eyes shut. "He vomited sometime in the night, and then since he couldn't move, he drowned in it."

Hiccup frowned in disgust and furrowed his brows.

 _What a way to go_.

"It's because no one was there to turn him over. _I_ wasn't there to help him!"

So she blamed herself. Hiccup shook his head and wrapped his arms around her head. There was no easy way to console her. Carefully, he parted her hair away from her face and delicately wiped her cheeks. "Astrid, you're blaming yourself for something that wasn't your fault. Even if you were able to be with your father all the time, something still might have happened. You couldn't have watched him 24/7."

Astrid looked him in the eye, listening to what he had to say.

"Don't cry because he's gone, cry because he _lived_ , and he doesn't have to suffer anymore."

She nodded harshly as a fresh round of tears welled up. He just hugged her tight.

Uncle Finn approached them, resting a fatherly hand on her back. "Astrid, it killed your father to not be able to speak anymore. As much as he loved you and seeing you happy, I know he's much happier watching your joy from Heaven. Where he can cheer and sing along."

She nodded against Hiccup, and then whispered, "I know. I know he's in a better place…it just hurts."

"Of course it does," Uncle Finn nodded sagely. "It hurts me too. I just hate seeing you in pain."

Astrid looked up at the two men in her life, and sniffled. "What do I do now? The only reason I was applying to work here was to take care of dad. I don't…" She hung her head, dejected. "What's going to happen to me?" She pulled away from Hiccup. "You're leaving for Africa, and I'll never see you. I'm…" An ugly sound got caught in her throat as she cried. If only she could stop these pathetic tears. If only she could control her volume. She couldn't control anything. Her world was falling apart around her, and everything felt hazy and swayed. All she could do was cling to Hiccup and cry.

Hiccup didn't let her move far away, as he tugged her back, and kissed her softly. "Astrid, you keep thinking of yourself as this isolated island, not connected to anything. But you're really a puzzle piece, you're apart of something much much bigger." He smiled at her, urging her to meet his eyes. "And I'm the weird jagged piece that hooks in next to you. I want to go back to Tanzania, yes. But I also want to spend the rest of my life with you."

His words fell upon her like a warm blanket, wrapping her in a cocoon of protection, and soothing her soul.

"I love you, Astrid. And…I'd like to formally invite you to come with us to Africa."

She and Uncle Finn stared at him with awe.

"Of course, you have enough to think about right now and I didn't mean to overwhelm you…but I just want you to have that option. So me leaving doesn't have to feel like the end. Everything will work out eventually Astrid, I promise."

"Thank you." She nodded, resting her head on his collarbone.

"Anything for you." He whispered back.

"I love you too," she replied. Finally, finally, a smiled graced her face.

The atmosphere in the room went from warm and comforting to cold and dismal in a matter of seconds. A clack of heels hit the floor, and a shrill voice called out. "Where's my Axel? I want to see him."

Astrid stood ramrod straight and looked over to the new voice sharply. Malice, wrath, and revulsion marched across her tear stained cheeks. "Mom?"

"Hello darling." Phillis Hofferson smiled patiently, as she always had addressing her child. She was exactly what Hiccup pictured when he thought of an absent mother. Bleached blonde hair, heavy red lipstick, fur-lined collar and stilettos, and a leather hand bag. A short, squat man with a bad toupee and dated glasses stood inconspicuously behind her. "Did you miss me?"

Astrid's nostrils flared, and she bit her lip to keep from screaming and swearing. This was not the place.

"Phillis, I wondered when you'd be here." Finn acknowledged.

"I would have been here sooner, but the traffic from Chicago was terrible."

Astrid looked at her Uncle in betrayal, " _you_ called her?"

"No matter how you feel, Astrid, it was the right thing to do." Finn didn't mean to lecture her, but that's how it sounded.

"After all, he was my husband," said Phillis.

" _WAS_!" Shouted Astrid. "You abandoned him! You harpy! Why couldn't you just stay away!?"

Hiccup grasped Astrid around the waist, in part to comfort her, and to keep her from attacking the woman.

The action was not missed by Astrid's mother. "And who is this? Your boyfriend?"

"You can call me Henry," said Hiccup, blankly. "Axel is over across the hall, if you wanted to see him."

"Thank you, finally someone is giving some answers." She flicked her hair over her shoulder with a perfectly manicured hand and walked out of the room.

Once gone, Astrid whirled on him. "Why did you tell her where he was?! I don't want her alone with him! I hate her! I hate her!" She emphasized this with violent thumps to his chest.

He figured she was justified in her hate. "I know you do. But she's not going to do anything to him. She loved him at one point, right? No matter what she did, she should be allowed to say goodbye."

Astrid nodded, understanding, but not happy about it. "I suppose you're right." A snarl tore at her lip. "She's still a bitch."

Uncle Finn also had strong feelings about Phillis being back, despite trying to do the right thing. He glanced in the direction she had gone, and decidedly followed her. Leaving the kids alone.

Hiccup cupped Astrid's face gently, giving her a tender kiss to the forehead. "My mom is coming home in a few weeks, just in time for the holidays. Knowing her, she'll adopt you right away."

This was another comforting idea to Astrid. "I like your mom. At least, what I can tell from D&D."

"She's always trying to get involved in my life one way or another." Hiccup smiled, fondly. He mused Astrid's hair slightly, "she's always asking about you. She nearly cried when I told her we were dating."

Astrid smiled, holding his hand lightly. "Of happiness, I hope."

He snickered. "Of course!"

Astrid's smiled faded as she fell into thought. "What should I do about Stormfly?"

Hiccup was quiet. "Maybe just tell her what happened. I don't know if seeing him would be good for her. But if you like, I can drive home and get her."

Astrid shook her head, "no, you're right. Birds are very keen to these sorts of things. I've read that the death of a loved one usually results in the death of the bird." Astrid looked shamefully away, "It might be selfish, but I don't want to lose her too."

"It's not selfish." He gave a half-smile. "I think Stormfly understands that your dad was sick. She might already know this was going to happen."

Astrid nodded, "alright, I'll tell her."

"That's my girl."

They heard the click of heels behind them as Phillis re-entered the room. Her makeup was perfectly in place. "I've had enough of this dreary place." She announced, "let's go get dinner. The five of us."

Astrid looked at Hiccup, begging him to do something. He only shrugged.

"Alright," said Finn. "The mortician is on his way. I think it's best if we leave. Astrid's been here since 10 o'clock this morning."

Hiccup winced, that was a least 5 hours.

"I'm thinking either Papa Vino's or Chili's. I haven't been to either since leaving home."

—

Dinner was awkward. The men sat quietly, not really knowing what to say. The man with Phillis hadn't said a word, as it was obvious he felt like an intruder. Astrid was thankful for it, because if he had spoke, she'd have to resist the urge to punch his lights out.

"So," Astrid finally spoke, maddened by the silence. "Did you finally get to go to Europe?"

"Oh yes!" Her mother said, joyfully. "We spend a month over there. A week in England, a week in France, a week in Italy, and a week in Germany. It was wonderful."

"That's nice." Astrid kept her voice as neutral as possible.

"We also travelled a lot in the US. I finally got to see the Grand Canyon. Very impressive. We spent a lot of time in New York and Boston…" and she was off. Astrid could find a little comfort in just letting her mother blather on and on instead of sitting in awkward silence.

She glanced over to Hiccup to see him doodling on the paper table cloth with a pen.

"And what about you, Darling? I haven't spoke to you since I left."

"That's because you told me to never talk to you again." She bit.

Her mother shrunk slightly. "Well, yes…but you could have tried."

Hiccup reached under the table and took her hand gently.

Astrid sighed. "I went into nursing. LMC has a good program."

"Nursing? That's respectable. Not quite Law, though."

Astrid resisted the urge to hiss.

"Do you have a job lined up after school?" Phillis asked.

"Yes, I do. I have 2 offers for private companies." It wasn't a lie, though the term 'company' was pretty loose.

"Impressive." Her mother nodded, glancing at her phone. "Do you have a job right now?"

"Yeah, I work as a cashier at Gobber's Goods."

"Gobber's Goods!? You mean that tacky little hardware store downtown? What on earth made you apply there?" The woman laughed.

Astrid was undeterred. "I was desperate, but now I love it. It's my favorite job so far."

"How can you enjoy it? Do you even know anything about Hardware?"

"I'm learning more and more, and I get along really well with my co-workers." She looked sidelong at Hiccup, who smiled.

"That's nice." It was obvious that she didn't really care, but she was making an effort. "And you Finn, how's business?"

"Business is booming." Supplied her Uncle. "We have 17 trucks now, and we're the best electricians in the county."

"Wow, that is impressive. I'm sure Axel's proud." She smiled, faintly. "What about you, though. Are you married again?"

Finn looked down at his hands. Once, before Astrid was born, Finn had been married to his high school sweetheart, Martha. But she died giving birth to a stillborn son. Finn had never really gotten over it, and it was kindly thought as taboo to speak of in polite company. "No, I'm not. Haven't even thought about it."

"It's a shame," said Phillis with a sigh. "I'm sure Martha and your son are looking down from heaven, and hate seeing you so miserable."

Hiccup leaned back a little in his seat, as the awkwardness of the situation was palpable.

"I'm not miserable." He stated, calmly. "Astrid's been like a daughter to me, and we have great fun together. Otherwise, I'm extremely busy taking care of the company, when I wasn't visiting Axel."

"Oh, I see." Said the mother, quietly.

Hiccup took a sip of his soda. The air felt dry.

"Silly me," Started Phillis looking over at Hiccup, "how long have you two been seeing each other?"

"Oh, about two months." Answered Astrid.

"How very nice. What does he study?"

Astrid glanced at Hiccup, he was able to answer for himself.

It was taking Hiccup a while to get used to the idea that Phillis was Astrid's mom, and not just some distant Aunt. She did look at lot like Astrid, however. For Astrid's benefit, he decided to lay the charm on thick. If this woman believed that he was the most amazing man in the world, she'd have no ammunition to get Astrid with. "I study Industrial Design in Engineering Technology."

"My my, that's quite a mouthful. What is that?"

"I'm learning how to design and manufacture functional prosthetics at affordable prices. How you ever heard of the shoe brand Tom's?"

"Of course," said Phillis, leaning forward a bit in interest.

"For every shoe they sell, they give another away in a developing country. My friend, Jacob Ingerman, and I are creating a similar business, since there's about a million new amputees per year globally, and about 2 million Americans that are amputees alone, not to mention that children go through a prothetic every 1 to 2 years. The average price of a prosthetic is anywhere from 5,000 to 50,000 dollars. I don't know for sure, but I don't think our homeless veterans can afford that price. 400 dollars might still seem expensive, but this covers the price of two legs. One for the person commissioning the project, and another for a person in Africa. And we do payment plans for people here in the States that can't just fork over 400 bucks."

"Hmm, I didn't know they made prosthesis in mass quantities."

"They don't," he clarified. "Every single leg we make will have to be fitted in person. You see, my mother is a missionary in Tanzania, and once I graduate, I'll be going back with her. I will be leading the part of the organization over there. While Fish—er, Jacob will be leading the group here. I have someone who can 3D scan and model, and someone who can do the fittings."

"Are your legs very good quality then? Have you had someone test them?"

"Field testing." He reached under the table and undid his leg, holding it up. "I've designed several different variations for myself, depending on the weather. It's made out of ABS, the same kind of plastic used to make legos. It would take a car to break it. I'm not the only one using these either, everyone in my little company has a loved one missing a limb and they made a prothetic for."

"Sounds fairly complicated." Said Phillis, now very attentive. "But not very profitable."

Hiccup clarified. "The materials for one leg are about 50 dollars, the other money goes to labor. So we make a good margin."

"Well, it's a nice dream, I hope it all works out for you."

Hiccup smiled, putting the leg back on. "It's not a dream, it's already happening. My team and I have already made 20 legs, so we'll be able to fit 20 people with new legs when I get to Africa."

"Oh how very nice." Phillis smiled. "That's got to be hard though, having to leave Astrid."

Hiccup held her hand gently.

"I told you I had two offers from private companies." Astrid shrugged, "I'm just trying to decide which route is the best."

Phillis looked very stricken at this new revelation. "So, you're moving to Africa…to live in a mud hut with a cripple?"

"We don't live in a mud hut…" Hiccup started to correct.

"Astrid, you had so much to live for! You went to Yale! You were going to be a promising lawyer!"

"And who's fault is it that I couldn't!?" Astrid raised her voice, standing up. "Who took my trust fund away and put dad into Hospice when he didn't want to?! Cause I know it wasn't me or Uncle Finn!"

Hiccup tugged her arm. "Astrid…"

Phillis huffed in annoyance. "I already explained myself to you. I don't have to again. Or to Henry."

The two women fell into uncomfortable silence.

"Do you have a business card?" The quiet man who was with Mrs. Hofferson—well, Mrs. Ander's now, had finally spoken up.

"Marcus!" Phillis hissed.

"I think it's a very promising venture. I do run several successful businesses, if you ever need help with anything. I'd be willing to donate if you need new equipment."

Hiccup took out his wallet and swapped business cards with the man. "Thank you, sir. I'm flattered that you think so."

The man smiled, and then looked at his new wife. "Give him some credit, hon. Not all of Africa is underdeveloped, desert wasteland. Just some of it is. And that's the part that everyone sees in movies. Doesn't it make you proud that your daughter could be saving lives and making everyday life easier for poorer folks?"

Phillis was silent, a petulant frown on her face. "I guess."

The rest of the meal was much better, as Phillis had enough conversation. Most talk was between the men as both Marcus and Finn were curious about Hiccup's blooming business. It was still very new, and wasn't considered a true business yet since they were still in school. More like a class project that got out of hand. But it's what Hiccup had wanted to do for a while, and Astrid knew he'd find a way to make it happen.

Astrid, however, was quiet for an entirely different reason. What was left of her busy life had revolved around her father. Now that he was gone, she really was at a loss. Of course going to Tanzania with Hiccup was the obvious answer, but was it what she _should_ do? Would she be a distraction for him? These were all concerns that weighed heavily on her still grieving mind.

She had cried for so long at Hospice, she feared she'd never stop. A gaping hole was left bleeding out of her chest.

Her father, her daddy. He was gone.

Though, she supposed, he'd been gone for a while. And all she was really missing now was the feel of his hand in hers, and the scratch of his beard on her face as she leaned in to kiss him.

She was an orphan now, since her mother was too self-absorbed to have anything to do with her. After the funeral, Phillis would most likely run off to God knows where, and she'd never hear from her again.

She thanked God that Hiccup was in her life now. She couldn't imagine trying to get any comfort from Scott in this situation. She reached over the bench and entwined her fingers with his as he talked. A little pink dusted his cheeks.

—

After the meal was over, Hiccup invited Astrid to stay with him instead of going home alone. She was thankful for this, since she hadn't wanted to go back to her dreary apartment.

At the house, Stoick and Gobber were drinking beers in the kitchen when they entered.

"Ah lass, I wondered if you'd be coming over." Stoick said, pulling a chair out for her.

"I hope I'm not intruding." She spoke meekly.

"Of course not! Can I get you anything? Water? Beer?"

"I'm fine, thank you." She sat down, and Hiccup sat next to her.

"You know," Stoick began. "I lost my father when I was just a little older than you. Valka and I were married already, though. He owned a gun store, and some punk kids broke in at night and shot him. I cried like a baby for weeks. It was the primary reason I got interested into going into policing instead of sole missionary work, like I had been. Valka urged me on and supported me. It was rough, and it's still rough when I have to go so long without seeing her. But when I retire in a few more years, I'm going to go be with her. I just had a sense of duty to fulfill." He finished his Leinenkugel. "Sorry, I sort of rambled there. I might have had a bit to drink."

Astrid smiled at him. "No, thanks for telling me that."

Stoick wrapped an arm around her and pulled her into a hug. "It'll hurt for a while, Lass. But it's okay to grieve."

Astrid nodded against him, trying to will herself not to cry again.

"Why don't you two go to bed? I'm sure it's been an emotional day."

Astrid smiled in thanks, "thanks dad, oh!" She blushed.

Stoick just smiled at her. "Its fine with me if its fine with you."

—

Astrid put on the spare pajamas that the Haddock's kept for her and kissed Hiccup goodnight.

"Where are you going?" He asked, watching her go into the hall.

"Uh…to the spare room?"

"Come here, just leave the door open."

She did as he asked, and climbed onto the bed with him. He turned out the light, and laid on his back. Slowly, she moved over until her head rested on his shoulder and one leg draped over his. "Is this okay?"

"Mm-hmm." He hummed, wrapping his arm around her.

A few minutes passed and there was a loud 'WHUMP' at the end of the bed.

"Glad you could join us, Toothless." He smirked.

The cat lazily stretched out and laid on his back.

"Spoiled baby."

Astrid giggled. "You know, Halloween is in a few days."

"Oh right, I almost forgot."

"What are you going to be?"

"I'm going as The Gingerbread Man from Shrek. You know, at the part where Farquaad breaks off his legs?"

"Genius." She chuckled. "Are you entering the costume contest at school?"

"Of course! I do every year! What are you going as?"

She shrugged, "I didn't actually have a costume picked out. I guess I could go as Pinocchio, from Shrek."

"You have to wear a thong though." He stated, matter of factly.

She sat up and looked at him, "excuse you?"

"It's in the movie! 'Say something crazy, like 'I'm wearing ladies underwear.' 'Okay, I'm wearing ladies underwear…' '…Are you?' You know! It's the best part of the movie!"

"That's the second movie! And that's not even the best part! The best part is when Donkey drinks the potion and he says, 'do I look any different?' and Puss says, 'You still look like an ass to me.'"

"Okay, that is pretty good. But the thong scene is still the best!"

"Dreamworks movies are all really good." Astrid said with finality.

Stoick peeked his head in the door. "Hey you two. I don't mind you sharing a bed, but there better not be any pre-marital sex happening."

"Don't worry dad," Hiccup pacified. "We're not going to do anything."

"Okay. Because you don't need any one-legged panther trainers running around."

"Wait, dad, are you serious?" Hiccup sat up a little.

"I don't mean you, Hiccup."

The boy laid back down.

"You were adopted from Tanzania, a rare albino baby."

"Dad!"


	16. November 19, 2016

If you guys didn't already, check out my other fic I've been writing, called The North Tower. It's a touch spooky, but mostly just Hiccstrid, because I can't seem to write anything else.

—

"I just want to make a return."

Gobber's Goods was uncharacteristically busy. Between salt, shovels, anti-freeze, rakes, and lawn bags every customer that would need to winterize their homes came in at the exact same time and there was a line from the counter and around the shelves. Hiccup and Gobber were busy helping everyone who came through the door to find exactly what they were looking for.

Meanwhile, Astrid was rushing every customer through the line as fast as possible. But as retail dictated, when patience was needed, that's when it was least.

Astrid smiled to the man's humble request. "I would love to do that for you, but I'm afraid you'll have to get in line."

"Well, that's not fair." The man said rudely.

The customer that she had be serving when he interrupted added in, "that isn't fair. You can't tell him to get in the back of the line for that."

"I want to see a manager."

Astrid glanced over to Hiccup who was seemingly having three different conversations with three different people.

It was amazing actually.

Behind the current customer, stood a usual. A man who worked for her uncle Finn and came in once or twice a week. He smiled at her, patiently.

"You know what, I'll just take care of you after I finish with her." Astrid gestured to the woman in front of her.

The man with the returned nodded in thanks, and seemed much more pleasant. Protests came from the line.

When the usual customer, a man named Bjorn, came up to the counter, he was still smiling.

"Thank you for your patience," she sighed, exhausted.

"Oh sweetheart. People are so impatient and mean spirited. None of it is your fault, and you're just being sweet as pie. Don't let them poison you, and your day will get better."

Astrid nearly cried at his kindness.

After the line got through, everything calmed down. Then it was dead again.

"Haven't had a day like that since the spring. You'd think there was going to be a blizzard tomorrow." Gobber said, cracking his back.

"I hope not." Astrid said, leaning forward on the counter. "I'm got some moving to do."

Hiccup smiled at her and took two soda's out of the fridge. "Right, do you have everything packed?"

She winced. "Mostly. But I didn't pack up my bathroom stuff. Is your dad helping tonight?"

"He was going to," Hiccup explained, "but Mom decided to come a little early to miss the Thanksgiving rush, so he's going to pick her up from O'Hare, and then they'll stay in Chicago for the night."

"How cute." Astrid smiled, "I guess we're on our own then."

"Packing?" Asked Gobber, "why is she packing?"

Hiccup smiled broadly and Astrid looked away shyly. "I invited Astrid to come with me to Africa, and she has accepted. She's moving into my basement suite to save up money for the plane ticket."

"Why didn't you offer to finance her?" Gobber asked, unashamed.

"Because I don't want to be in debt to anyone else." Astrid said simply. "He did offer, but I declined. It's not fair."

Gobber scratched the back of his neck. "You sure you two can handle this? Africa is a long way away, and living together…"

"We're not really living together, because the basement suite is kind of it's own thing. It has a kitchen and everything. And if you're afraid we'll break up, I wouldn't worry," provided Hiccup. "I love Astrid with all my heart, and I intend to marry her, when the time is right."

He considered it a moment. "And the lady?"

"I want to marry him too," said Astrid with a nod. "I had never thought of myself as the marrying kind. Most girls dream of their weddings and how many kids they'll have…but I didn't. Even with Scott I thought 'this isn't going to last forever.'" She glanced over to her boyfriend. "But with Hiccup…every second we're away, I can feel it. Like, he's an extension of myself, and when he's gone, I'm incomplete."

"Like a soulmate," Hiccup finished.

"Yeah, exactly like a soulmate."

They were both brought out of the moment by a loud sniffing sound. "Oh Thor and Odin above, that was beautiful."

"Oh you!" Hiccup rolled his eyes and gave the man a nudge with his elbow. "You're such a big softy."

"Well, just let me know when you're planning on tying the knot, I'll write a _lovely_ tambourine solo for you."

"Please don't."

—

Astrid and Hiccup drove together in her jeep to her house.

"I'm home!" Astrid called out to her crazy roommate.

"You don't need to be so loud!" screamed the reply, louder than she had.

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Hiccup's here, just so you know."

"Hi Eleanor," Hiccup said politely. The roommate was usually in a better mood when he used her… _other_ name.

Said girl walked out of her room, stark naked.

Hiccup yelped at his burning retinas and covered his face in his hands. "Oh come on! Not again!"

"Dude, I even told you he was here." Astrid exasperated.

"I don't understand why you make such a big deal about nudity." Said Eleanor. "I just came out to get my phone. Then I will be getting dressed and leaving for the night. I don't want to deal with your noise."

Astrid shrugged. "You were the one that wanted me to move out before Thanksgiving."

"Because my new roommate is moving in after Black Friday, and I must have ample time to cleanse the apartment before she arrives."

"I'm going to clean up after I leave. I'm not just going to leave garbage everywhere."

"I don't mean physically," said Eleanor.

"Oh…"  
"Is it save to look yet?" Hiccup asked, his eyes still covered.

Eleanor turned at went back into her room.

"You're good."

Hiccup looked up with a sigh. "I've seen more of that woman then I ever wanted to."

"Me too," Astrid agreed. "Anyways, I'll get started packing up my bathroom stuff, and you can start loading some boxes in my jeep."

"Okay, but I might need some help with some of the heavier ones."

The couple set to work, first by propping the door open with a rock for easy loading.

"So, we took most of the stuff in your room last time, what's this time? And how are we going to get the furniture over there with just the Jeep?"

"Most of the furniture I'm just going to give to the new roommate. The suite does have a bed, right?"

"Right. It was a desk and a little bedside table."

"Closet?"

"Yep."

"Cool. So I don't think I really have to take any furniture, except…" She went to her room as Hiccup followed after. It was a small room, with one window. A big suitcase sat in the corner with a lot of clothes and other accessories. Another hamper of laundry sat next to that. She had her modest library packed into a box. Then, another smaller box sat on her desk.

"This lamp was actually made by my dad, so I'd like to take it with me. I might not be able to take it to Africa though." The lamp had a wooden body with swooping branches that came off of it, like swan necks.

"That's fine, and you might not be able to take it on this trip, but if you end up coming back with me next time, we can bring it then." He smiled at her.

Astrid looked over the white walls of her room, which were now stripped of all her personal items. "I feel like I'm in limbo. I don't really know what to do with my stuff, because I'm not going to be settled in a place for very long."

Hiccup walked up to her, and wrapped his arms around her. "I kind of feel the same way. Three years in Africa might seem like a long time, but it really isn't."

"You can accumulate a lot of junk in three years though." Astrid gestured to the room around her.

"Which is why you and I are going to adopt a minimalist life style."

She sighed, "easier said then done."

He smiled at her, and kissed her nose. "Let's take out that box of books together, I'm sure it's heavy as balls."

So as Astrid finished packing up the bathroom and other miscellaneous items, Hiccup took out the already packed boxes in her room and in the bathroom. At about 10 pm, Hiccup fell on his rump in the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" Astrid asked, seeing him on the floor.

"Nothing," he assured with a smile. "I'm just a little tired."

"Oh that's fine, don't you want to sit on the couch?"

He waved her off, "if I sit somewhere comfortable, I'm not going to be able to get up later."

Astrid laughed, lightly. "Sorry we got started so late. We should have put this off until tomorrow."

"Nope, I said we'd get you moved out in two days. Yesterday we packed everything up. Today is loading day. I don't mind staying up a little late for you. Besides, we're almost done."

Astrid smiled sweetly. "Well, I really appreciate it. I appreciate you."

Hiccup smiled wearily at her.

"Take all the time you need. I'm almost done. I just want to make sure the bathroom is nice and clean, like I promised for Eleanor."

Almost as soon as she left the room, Hiccup heard the door slam.

He wondered if Eleanor had returned early, or if Astrid was just closing it for the time being, but then he heard her speak.

"What are you doing here?"

"I…I miss you, Astrid. Please take me back." Scott's sickening voice spoke from the living room.

"No, absolutely not." Astrid stated, coming closer to the kitchen.

"Please Astrid, I need you."

"No Scott," she spoke, in the doorway to the kitchen. "I've moved on and I'm very happy. You should leave."

Scott caught a glimpse of Hiccup on the floor and only saw red.

"Oh hey Cus…H-How's it going?"

"Oh you've got to be kidding! I'm going to murder you, you son of a bitch!" And Scott hurried towards him.

Astrid wrapped an arm around his shoulder and neck, putting him in a headlock. It wasn't very effective since he was so much stronger and taller than her. "Please Scott! Stop! Leave him alone!"

Scott was deaf to her cries and threw her off of him, knocking the wind out of her as she hit the floor.

"Astrid!" Hiccup scrambled to his feet, his prosthetic slipping a bit on the linoleum.

Scott grabbed him by his shirt collar and reeled back for a punch.

Being picked on by Scott for several years, Hiccup had learned some defense mechanisms. He threw his arms up in an X shape in front of his face to block the punch.

Scott quickly changed tactics and punched his cousin in the gut, making Hiccup double over in pain and cough. From here, Scott shoved him backward into the counter, where he painfully collided.

Recovering, Astrid leapt at Scott and tackled him to the floor and landed a few decent punches to his face. "You have the audacity to just barge back into my life, bringing pain just like you did before? You really have no concept of consequences, do you?! You cheated on your wife! Don't be surprised that I hate you!"

At the accusations, Scott grabbed her shoulders and flipped them over, and grasped her neck. "I told you this wasn't over until I say so! And if it has to end, it's going to be on my terms!"

Astrid kneed him many times, but he wouldn't relent.

Hiccup recovered, and decided to use his strengths. He kicked Scott as hard as he could in the side with his metal leg. "Get your filthy hands off of her, you creep!" He shouted, though it sounded weak in his pain.

Scott was quickly getting sick of these distractions. He could take Astrid easily, but Hiccup was much harder. So he had to get rid of him first. Scott snarled at the man, and stood quickly, then tackled him.

They wrestled, both fighting for their lives. But Scott was always stronger then Hiccup, and pinned him to the ground with his hands on his throat. "I hate you!" Scott bit vehemently. "You always made me look bad, being such a perfect child. Taming a damn tiger, and now running your own business."

Hiccup's face was turning red as he fought to breathe.

All the while he went on his tirade, Astrid regained her breath and scanned the room. If this continued, Scott would end up killing one of them. He had to be stopped.

That's when she spotted the cast iron frying pan on the stove. She quickly seized it.

"You're such a faker!" Scott roared, spit landing on Hiccup's nearly purple face. "I'm going to kill you! I've always wanted to kill you!"

His words were cut short as Astrid careened the frying pan off of Scott's skull as hard as she could.

He fell to the floor with a thud.

Astrid gripped Hiccup by the arm and pulled him out from under Scott's limp body.

He took several gasping breathes as she clung to him. "Are you okay?" She asked, knowing the answer.

He couldn't speak right away, as he was too busy breathing, but he managed a weak smile and searched her for wounds. Finally, he whispered, "thank you. I'll be okay. What about you?"

"I'll be fine in a minute or two." She sighed too, relieved that Scott was out cold. "We're going to have bruises."

"Good thing it's cold out." He supplied, rubbing his neck. "Scarves will hide these."

"We need to call the police."

He nodded. "Yeah, good idea." Slowly he got off the floor, rubbing his sore body. He took his phone out of his pocket, and dialed 911.

Astrid checked over Scott with a sense of dread hitting her stomach. "Uh, Hiccup? Honey?" She whispered.

Hiccup glanced over, a dial tone in his ear.

A small puddle of blood was forming around Scott's head.

"He's not breathing, and he doesn't have a pulse."

" _911, what's your emergency?_ "

Hiccup stared at her trembling form, and the now corpse that laid in front of her. He knew what the right thing to do was, but was it the smart thing?

"I'm sorry," he told the operator, "I accidentally pressed the emergency button on my phone. No emergency here."

" _Glad to hear it! Have a nice night, sir._ "

"Thanks, you too." And he hung up.

Astrid stared at him wide eyed. "What are you thinking?!"

Hiccup coughed a little, and went to get a drink of water. "I don't know, probably something stupid."

"I think we need to take a moment to breathe, and then maybe you'll change your mind about whatever crazy scheme you're planning."

Hiccup shook his head, swallowing the cold water. "Astrid," he sighed, looking out the back window. "I know we should call the police, but we can't."

"What? Why? What else are we supposed to do? Are you just scared of your dad?"

"No, listen." He got down and knelt in front of her. "Do you know who Scott's dad is?"

"Some judge?"  
"Not just any judge, _The_ Judge."

"So? They wouldn't give our case to him anyway, it would be bias."

"Judge Soren Jorgenson is a very rich and powerful man. He has a lot of influences in the community. No offense, but you're just an orphan girl with no family and a few friends. He would do whatever it takes to make you look guilty."

"What about you?"

"I'm an accomplice."

"No one has to know that," Astrid begged. "You could just have been an innocent bystander that I was defending."

"No one is going to buy that, Astrid. Since I'm related to him, and we have a history of not getting along."

"What about your dad? Isn't he considered a rich and powerful man with a lot of influence?"

Hiccup shook his head. "My dad wouldn't be allowed to get involved in this _because_ of his bias."

"And Scott's dad _can_?"

"Because Soren is a devious man that is a good liar and does underhanded dealings. And his son is the victim here, there's already going to be sympathy."

"And this guy is a judge?"

"Kinda scary isn't it?"

Astrid didn't say anything, just looked back at Scott. "There has to be another way."

"Not that I can see," Hiccup sighed.

"Alright, you and I are in this together, I guess. What's the plan?"

Hiccup scratched his head, thinking. "Well, we'll have to hide the body."

Astrid got to work looking for an old rag to clean up the blood. "I don't like the sound of that."

"Do you like the sound of a lifetime in jail?"

"No, not particularly."

Hiccup stopped and took another calming breath. "I'll tell you what Astrid. I'll let you decide. If you think we show call the police, I'll call my dad right now."

Astrid shook her head. "No, you're right. It just seems so wrong."

"Now I know why people cheat the system." Hiccup finished his glass of water, quiet.

Both teens took a moment in their own little worlds to realize that they had just committed a murder, and that their lives would be changed no matter what the plan was. A lifetime of guilt is what they were signing up for.

Hiccup resolved to be guilt free. Scott was a maniac, and looked him straight in the eye and declared he was going to kill him. The guilt would be in the form of not following the rules.

He finally knelt to rifle through Scott's pockets. "Do you think he's the type to write a note?"

Astrid shrugged. "To make it look like a suicide? I don't think he would…maybe a drunk text though."

Hiccup found his keys, then his phone, and turned it on. "Great, he has a password."

"Well, if he has all those girlfriends, he ought to." She thought for a moment. "What's Scott's birth year?"

"Um…well, he's two years older than I am, and I'm 1995. So 1993?"

"Try that." Sure enough, 1993 opened the phone.

"What a moron."

"Let's wait until we hide the body to send the text." Astrid proposed.

"Good idea. And let's wait until at least midnight to do it, less people on the roads."

"Where are we going to hide it?"

She had a very good point.

"Even up 'til last week, Eret and his dad were taking the boat out on the lake for finishing. I bet it's still hooked up to the dock. I'll take him out and dump him as far out into the lake as I can."

"What will I do?"

"You…you drive his truck to the beach. And you should probably clean up the floor."  
"Okay." She nodded.

"Let's get the rest of the boxes into the jeep."

"Where is Scott going to go then?"

Hiccup walked out into the living room, and glanced out the window at the jeep. "We'll prop him up in the front seat. We'll make him look like he's sleeping."

"Good idea."

"How long do we have until your roommate returns?"

"I think she said she's spending the night at her friend's."

"Perfect." Hiccup nodded. "Let's get to work.

The rest of the boxes went into the jeep fairly quickly, since Astrid had paused her cleaning for the moment.

Hiccup was already feeling exhausted, and couldn't imagine how exhausting the rest of this night was going to be.

At midnight, Hiccup and Astrid lifted Scott from his puddle. And walk/dragged him out to her car.

"Oh sick, what's that smell? He shouldn't be smelling already, can he?"

"When someone dies, everything relaxes…including the bowels."

Astrid frowned hard. "I'm sickened."

"I've got him, just grab a trash bag and we'll spread it over the seat."

Hiccup got him out to the car and let him rest against his side before Astrid came running back out. To anyone else watching, it would look like Scott was just plum drunk. Which is what Hiccup counted on. Astrid spread out the trash bag and Hiccup carefully set the body in the passenger seat, taking special care to keep the bloody rag on the back of his head.

"Sorry Astrid, there might be a little blood on your seat."

"It's leather, it cleans easily."

Hiccup buckled Scott in, and closed the door. Then he leaned in to whisper. "Okay, so while I'm gone, I need you to make sure the house is spotless. Make sure the pan is cleaned, and the floor especially. Check every surface for blood, okay?"

Astrid nodded, with a swallow.

He handed her Scott's keys and phone. "Then, put on some gloves, and drive his truck to Silver Beach. Text Heather—…"

"What should I say?" She asked quickly.

"Something about…how sorry he was about being such a terrible husband and how she'll be rid of him soon enough?"

"Something vague?"

"And has bad spelling and grammar."

"Right right." Astrid agreed. "Alright, after I text Heather?"

"I want you to walk up the bluff to First Baptist Church. Wait for me by the parking lot entrance, and I'll come and get you."

"Promise?"

"Of course!" He leaned in and gave her a swift kiss. "No matter what happens, I love you, and I always will."

"I didn't mean to kill him." She whispered, fear gripping her heart.

"I know you didn't, sweetheart." He smiled softly. "Is it bad if I say I'm glad you did?"

Astrid sighed in relief, glad to know that they were on the same side. "You should go."

Hiccup nodded once, and then kissed her on the lips once again.

—

It was one of those odd moments where Hiccup realized just how far Astrid lived from him. Ten minutes felt like an hour, and he was only halfway there. Provided, driving with a corpse in the passenger seat certainly didn't make time go any faster. More like, he was so overly aware of the body next to him and the absence of cars on the road, that he kept looking at the clock just to see. The longer it took him to hide the body, the more time he had to get caught.

It wasn't something he wanted to do today.

Hiccup hadn't even realized he had been holding his breath until he heard a breath next to him.

"SCOTT?" He nearly shouted.

But the body didn't respond. Hiccup had hit a pot hole, and the air in Scott's lungs made an escape.

"I'm just being paranoid. Rightfully so, this is so messed up."  
Reaching over, Hiccup turned up the stereo and Justin Timberlake greeted him like an old friend.

 _It cuts right on my eye, yeah it hurt, won't lie_

 _Still can't see, think I saw you with another guy_

 _Fair fight, knocked down, then I got over you_

 _Can't fight no more, you knock me out_

 _What am I supposed to do?_

Hiccup gripped the steering wheel a little too hard. His knuckles turning white.

 _I don't understand it_

 _Tell me how could you be so low?_

 _Been swinging after the bell and after all of the whistle blows._

 _Tried to go below the belt, through my chest, perfect hit to the dome_

 _Dammit babe_

 _This ain't the girl I used to know_

 _No, not anymore, TKO_

He turned off the stereo almost instantly. Maybe driving in silence would be better then that.

It was when he was on a country road, lined with trees, nearly at his house, when everything came crashing down.

Red and blue lights flashed in the mirrors.

This was it. It was all over. What did he do now? Pull over and hide the body in the back seat? Play dumb? Or gun it?

Despite his criminal actions, he still thought of himself as a good boy, and pulled over peacefully. He waited on the shoulder, his foot tapping manically. He wanted to cry.

He rolled down the window, letting the frigid November air in. He heard only heard footsteps over the frantic beating of his pulse in his ears. Finally the Officer came up to the window. "Hi, license and registration please."

Hiccup obediently reached into his back pocket for his license. "Um, this is my girlfriends car, so the registration is in her name."

"That's fine, that's fine."

Hiccup reached over Scott's lap and into the glove compartment to get the papers. "Uh, here. What seems to be the problem?" He asked, afraid of the answer.

The officer was quiet a moment as he was studying the license. "You're the Chief's son, aren't you?"

Hiccup nodded, "yeah, that's me."

"Well, I guess I can't go too hard on you." The man smiled. "You're rear left light is out. Make sure your girlfriend knows and have her get it fixed. I won't give you a ticket or anything."

Hiccup nearly cried in relief. "Yes, thank you. I will make sure that gets done."

"You look kind of nervous." The officer noted, leaning on the window.

"I've just never had a ticket before, and I was worried about my dad's reaction."

"Well, no need to worry." He looked over and noticed Scott for the first time in the darkness. "What's wrong with your friend there?"

Hiccup feels goosebumps on the back of his neck. This scenario, along with 70 others, had run through his mind on his long drive. He had just the lie.

"He's stunk drunk, sir." He said resolutely, refusing his voice to waver. "He texted me to pick him up from the bar. Then he got in the seat, pooped his pants, and passed out."

"Wow, what a friend," said the uniformed man. "You look a little beat up too. You okay?"

"He was in the middle of a fight, and I had to pull him out. The other guy didn't appreciate it." Yes, this was going smoothly, he might get away with it.

"Aw, bummer." He simpered, "well, thanks for taking care of him so he didn't drive drunk. Go home and get some rest."

"Oh sure, of course I will! Thanks!"

"Have a nice night!" The man slapped the side of the car and walked off.

Hiccup's hands shook as he rolled the window up.

He almost prayed to thank God, but then realized thanking God for allowing him to get away with murder was pretty sacrilegious.

—

Finally, he rolled through the familiar tunnel of his neighborhood. He was so close.

At the other end of the drive, Hiccup pulled into Eret's driveway and turned his lights off. It was risky with all these trees, but it was riskier getting caught again with a dead body in Astrid's car.

He parked by the dock, a hop skip and a jump away from the Eretson house. No lights were on, as he had been undetected.

He opened the passenger side door and yanked Scott out of his seat, and let hm flop on the ground. He wasn't going to have more contact with him then necessary.

Down at the dock, sure enough, the little fishing boat sat tied up. It would likely remain out here all year, since the Eret Eretson Sr. loved to fish. Hiccup turned on the little light at the end of the dock that acted like a marker for land. It wasn't too bright, but he still had to move quickly, not to be spotted. The boat had a small motor, but for sake of silence, Hiccup decided against it. Oars sat on the floor, in case of emergency.

He supposed this would be an emergency.

He dragged his cousin's limp body down the dock and dropped him into the boat. Then he stepped in, preparing himself for the wobbly floor, and took to rowing.

It was a clear night, but no moon out. The stars were his only companions.

Finally, when the light on shore was but a speck in the distance, and his arms felt heavy, he stopped.

It was a calm night, despite the storm brewing inside him. Gentle waves lapped against the metal hull.

Then he looked at Scott. He supposed he should say a few words. But he had nothing nice to say.

"I'm sorry," he finally managed. "You were a jerk, and an asshole, and a liar…you hurt everyone around you. But…" he wasn't so sure if Scott didn't deserve to die. "I'm sorry that you're not getting a proper burial." He finished.

With a heave, Hiccup eased the body over the edge of the boat, almost going in with him too.

The body landed face up, and Hiccup pressed down on his chest with an oar. His lungs filled with water, and then sank away into the dark.

The dark deed was done.

Then he was alone.

Tears welled up in his eyes. He was disgusting. He was evil and vile and a murderer. This was all wrong and the guilt would tear him apart. So he bowed his head. "God…I…I know I messed up. This is all…messed up. It was never supposed to be like this. I was never…this isn't me. You know everything, so you know why I did it…"

He was aware he was rambling, but a confession was sorely deserved. "But I'm so scared. I've never been this scared in my life. Just please…forgive me for…for the lies I'm going to have to say. My punishment will come, I know…but please…have mercy on me. Have mercy on _her_. She doesn't deserve her lot in life, God…I just want her to be happy." And with that, Hiccup finally broke down completely into sobs.

But out on the lake, no one could hear his agony.

—

When Astrid had finished mopping the floor for the tenth time, she got down on her hands and knees and inspected it, just to make sure. She had done the same thing each time she mopped, _just to make sure_. The floor was probably cleaner than it had ever been.

Her knees were sopping wet, and she needed to move on.

The frying pan had soaked, and been scrubbed, and soaked again. She knew Eleanor would yell at her for cleaning it with water, since it was cast iron. But Astrid could handle it.

She found the rubber kitchen gloves her roommate kept, and slipped them on. For now, it would work. She carefully wiped off the keys and phone, and did a final sweep over the house, making sure she didn't leave any of her belongings around. All looked clear.

She locked the door behind her and hid her house keys under the doormat, like she had told Eleanor she'd do. Acting normal, she climbed into the truck and drove off.

The seat was far back, and she had to sit up to reach the peddles, but she didn't dare adjust the seat.

The radio turned on loud with the car, because he couldn't listen to music at a decent decibel.

 _You don't have to say what you did_

 _I already know, I found out from him_

 _Now there's just no chance_

 _With you and me_

 _There'll never be_

 _Don't it make you sad about it?_

Astrid blocked out the sound, pretending it didn't bother her. But it did.

 _You told me you love me_

 _Why did you leave me all alone?_

 _Now you tell me you need me_

 _When you call me on the phone_

 _Girl, I refuse_

 _You must have me confused_

 _With some other guy_

 _The bridges were burned_

 _Now it's your turn, to cry_

 _Cry me a river_

 _Cry me a river_

She pulled into the beach parking lot without incident. No one was out at this time of night, and those who were, didn't care.

Finally, she took out Scott's phone, and went to the messenger between him and Heather. The last few conversations had been short and not very friendly. She added one more, her guts twisting with each little clack of the keyboard.

 _Heather i know you'll probably never forgive me and i understand. Just wanted you to know that im sorry for being the worst. ill be out of your way soon._

Astrid turned the phone off before she could reply. Then she dropped the phone in the cupholder, with the keys, and then got out of the car.

Then she ran.

Ran down the parking lot, up the stairs of the bluff, and town. She darted around buildings, into alleys, and hid in doorways for only seconds at a time. It felt like someone was watching, silently judging, and pulling her spirit down into hell.

Finally, she made it to the church Hiccup had planned to meet her at. There were no cars in the parking lot waiting for her.

She collapsed in the back entranceway, falling to her rear. She scooted across the cement until her back hit cold bricks, and she let her head fall back against them.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry." She whispered, screwing her eyes shut. Fat, hot tears rolled down her cheeks, biting in the cold air. "I didn't mean to do it. I hated him, but I would never…he's dead because of me!"

She believed that there was a God, and that there were things considered right and wrong. And learned more and more about that once she started going to Church with Hiccup on Sunday's. Still, the afterlife was not really high on the list of priorities.

Until now. Death was in her hands, staining them actually.

"God…I'm ruined. I've done the unspeakable. You are the only one who can help me now…maybe I don't have the right to call on you, but I'm so lost. Please, Father…I am yours, save me."

As she uttered these words, a pair of headlights shown on her.

—

Well, it's not one of my stories until Astrid kills somebody, huh?


	17. November 24, 2016

Wow guys. Just. Wow.

The last chapter was apparently…not appreciated by a lot of people. I'm sorry if you felt hurt or betrayed by our characters, but I promise that there's always a happy ending. And the pay off will be so worth it.

But if you don't want to read anymore, I understand.

Hopefully this chapter helps a little.

—

Silence.

Pure unadulterated silence.

Thanksgiving dinner was always a treat at the Haddock household. Gobber had a knack for cooking, and showed it in his deep fried turkey. This year, Finn Hofferson was invited to join, melding two families together in harmony. There would be corn casserole, mashed potatoes, green beans, and plenty of cranberry sauce. Really, everyone should have been in good mood.

Stoick Haddock was in the kitchen, helping to make corn and green bean casserole, but his mind was a thousand miles away. Two days ago, his brother-in-law called him for a warrant on a missing person. His son, Scott. According to Soren, since the truth came out about his affairs and Heather had asked for a divorce, Scott had taken up drinking. He hadn't been home in two days, and Soren worried that he'd gotten in an accident. His best, and really only friend, David, had no idea where he was.

Well, the police had found his car abandoned in a parking lot with the keys and phone inside. But no Scott. He didn't know how to make heads or tails of the situation.

Valka Haddock had returned from Africa four days ago. She still felt very jet lagged, and she was exhausted from moving and flying, and even helping with the dinner. She had stayed up late the night before making pies. Currently, she was taking a nap in her room. Toothless curled up around her, a sucker for a warm body.

Gobber was struggling with his turkey on the porch. The fryer didn't want to start earlier, and now it was running late. They were supposed to eat at 1 o'clock, but it was leaning more towards 1:30. Not to mention, it was just too small. He, Stoick, and Finn were not small by any means, plus there was Hiccup, Astrid and Valka to feed, and he wanted to have left overs. At this rate, he wasn't sure if they'd have enough for turkey sandwiches for dinner.

Finn Hofferson was on the road. Astrid had given directions to her boyfriend's house, and he was thankful to have a big family to join this year. In the past, he and Astrid would go to Hospice and have thanksgiving with Axel. Volunteers in the community made food for the guests, and it was good, but it wasn't the same. Before Hospice, Finn had been invited around to his co-workers here and there. Sometimes Axel would convince Phillis to have him over. It was different from year to year. So as Finn drove under the tunnel, he hoped that this young man that held Astrid's heart would be good for her.

He also thought about his unpaid parking ticket, and if the Police Chief would magically know about it.

Hiccup and Astrid were cleaning the house. Hiccup washed the big windows as Astrid set the table.

You can probably guess what they were thinking about.

—

As Astrid crouched in the back trance to the church, a pair of headlights shown on her. Headlights that belonged to her own car, which had carried Hiccup back to her. The door slammed and he ran to her.

"Are you alright?" He asked, kneeling.

She smiled very softly. "As alright as I can be."

He returned the smile, and held an arm out for her. "Let's go home."

She nodded and stood with him.

His touch, however delicate it had been, stung her. Maybe she thought she didn't deserve his kindness, or maybe she felt shame. Whatever it was, the heat from his hand burned to the touch. Still, she refused to let go, because this was her Hiccup.

The seat to the car had been thoroughly cleaned, and there was no sign of blood anywhere. Astrid was grateful for it.

The ride back home was quiet. Astrid considered asking if she could turn on the radio, but couldn't find the voice to ask. The clock glowed a miserable 2 am. There was no one on the road now, as they drove through endless darkness.

"Your left brake light is out." He finally spoke, his voice as neutral as possible. "I got pulled over."

Astrid looked over to him, her face full of horror.

He reached out with one hand and held hers. "He just said to make sure to get your light fixed. I didn't get a ticket or anything."

She swallowed. "Where you with Scott when it happened?"

"With," He confirmed.

"And he didn't say anything?"

"He thanked me for taking him home so he didn't drive drunk."

Astrid breathed heavily. "That's…crazy lucky."

"Crazy something." He huffed.

At home, Hiccup pulled into the garage, and took out her big suitcase.

"I can carry that," she tried to stop him.  
"I got it."

Astrid didn't argue, just followed him into the silent house. He took the suitcase downstairs to the basement, to her little suite.

"Thank you." She spoke softly.

"We'll get the rest of your stuff in the morning. Dad should be home by then." It seemed that he was avoiding the inevitable. "Why don't you take a shower and get ready for bed?" He suggested. "Then we'll talk."

She glanced at his shirt. "You should get changed too, your shirt…" She gestured at him.

He wore a black Batman shirt, but the yellow logo was totally red now, and parts of the black looked darker. "Oh, yeah. Probably. I really liked this shirt too." He huffed.

"Soak it in hydrogen peroxide."

"That'll get the stain out?"

"It's what I use."

He looked at her smugly. "You often have blood staining your clothes?"

"I am a woman." She responded, blankly.

"OH." Couldn't meet her eyes.

Without anything else he left her in peace.

Astrid took her pajama's out, and made her way to the bathroom. She stripped off her dirty clothes and ran the shower to warm up the water. It all felt monotonous.

Since the sound of the crack of the frying pan, an invisible hand had taken hold of her throat and was slowly crushing her. Maybe it was Scott, or maybe the wounds inflicted during the fight still ached.

 _I'm going to kill you! I've always wanted to kill you!_

Scott's last words still echoed in her head, sending a chill down her spine.

She checked herself over in the mirror. There was a very clear hand shaped bruise on her throat. She figured there would be, considering what she saw on Hiccup's throat. Some makeup should cover it easily. She was just so thankful Scott hadn't punched her in the nose again. That had taken forever to heal, and she really didn't want anyone to think Hiccup had hurt her.

She stepped into the water, and let the boiling temperature serve as a comfort.

She had almost lost Hiccup. His lips had turned white, and his eyes slid shut as Scott pressed into him. Her boy couldn't even find the strength to push him away.

But now…would she lose him anyway? He had promised her he wouldn't leave, that he would love her until the end of time. But those were just words. No matter how wonderful and earnest he had been. He came for her, at the church. He didn't have to. He could have abandoned her, but he didn't.

But now that this was all over, and they both had time to think…what would he say? What would he do? Forget Africa. Did he even want to be with her anymore? What if…what if… _what if_ …?

Astrid found herself leaning against the wall, and sliding down into the tub. The porcelain was wide, wide enough for a man like Stoick. As the water filled the basin, she felt like she was drowning.

She didn't even realize she was crying until Hiccup knocked at the door. "Astrid? Are you alright?"

"What do you think?!" It wasn't supposed to be harsh. But the emotional storm inside her body had brewed and now overflowed. Fear, loneliness, uncertainty and overwhelming sadness gripped her in choke hold. This was Scott's last gift to her. Gone in body, but still torturing her in spirit.

Hiccup had decidedly entered the bathroom, despite his better judgement.

The curtain wasn't pulled back all the way, so from the door, he could see her curled up against the wall of the tub. She saw him, and pathetically covered her chest.

No words were spoken. As both were at a loss.

Truth be told, Hiccup was feeling very similar to her. He was worried she would be afraid of him for his decisions. Maybe she would push him away and refuse to be with him. What kind of missionary was he if he hid a dead body? What kind of person would he be if he lied to everyone he knew and loved?

Astrid stared into his eyes deeply, begging him for help.

He was just full of crazy ideas tonight. He knelt next to the tub, resting his arm on the edge. Then he finally spoke, "I'm not here to take advantage of you."

"I know." She whispered, which was hard to hear over the water.

"But…" he spoke sincerely as he glanced over the bruises on her neck. "I want you to know that I will never leave you. That this stupid thing we did tonight will not drive us apart."

"I know…" though she said it, it didn't sound like she believed it. "You said that earlier."

He sat at the edge of the tub. "I feel like no matter what words I use, they won't be enough. So I…want to show you something. And if at any time you're uncomfortable, don't hesitate to tell me. Okay?"

She nodded.

He leaned down to remove his leg, then followed suit with his clothes.

He stood before her, awkwardly balancing on the rim of the tub, completely naked. If she felt scared and vulnerable, he wanted to too. He waited with baited breath as she looked him over. He exposed himself to her, his body, his heart, his raw emotions, and even his ugly stump leg. If ever there was a time to turn him away, it was now.

But she didn't.

She slowly lowered her arms and patted the tub beside her.

Gingerly, he stepped in and crouched to sit behind her.

Her face was flushed, as she was embarrassed to be participating in something so intimate with him. She looked shaky and unsure.

Hiccup gently combed her hair back, away from her face. "You're perfect," he assured.

She smiled, liking the feeling of his hand on her shoulder. "You are too." She confirmed.

He leaned in and kissed her shoulder blade. He combed his fingers through her hair. "Can I wash your hair?" He asked.

She nodded.

Taking the shampoo from the rack, he squirted a little into his hand and began to massage her scalp.

It felt nice, and she felt herself start to finally relax.

He took special care to make sure none got in her eyes. Then he allowed her to rinse her hair before conditioning, and then ran a soapy washcloth over her body. All the while, he made sure to ask her permission before doing anything. The ball was in her court, and she was in control.

He draped her hair over her shoulder and washed her back. "Is this okay?"

"Yes," she confirmed, her eyes closed. What had she been worried about? His was gentle, sweet, and kind Hiccup. She loved him for all those reasons, and in this moment, her heart was overpowered with love. How could she have doubted him?

She turned around to face him, being thrilled by the way his eyes widened as he looked at her. "Now it's my turn." She stated, with a smile.

She took the washcloth from him, and began to scrub his still stained arms. She attentively scrubbed at his finger nails.

It continued like that. She carefully shampooed and conditioned his hair, and made sure his skin was cleaned of blood. When she finished, she shut the water off and allowed the washcloth to rest on the bottom of the tub as she caressed his face. "Thank you." She spoke, a serene smile on her lips.

He chuckled a little. "For what? Showing you my dinky-winky?"

Astrid snickered, the ache in her neck disappearing, and replaced with a warm tingle in her stomach. "Well, yeah. That was a treat."

Little wrinkles appeared around his eyes as his smile widened.

"But, for this…just…showing me that you meant what you said."

"Of course." He took her hands in his, and kissed her knuckles. "I want to protect you. I want you to always feel safe around me."

"Except…I was kind of uncomfortable for most of this." She admitted.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I can leave!"

"No, I'm fine now." She tugged him to sit again. "It took me a little to get used to it, but I'm really glad we did this." She scooted closer to him, "this was probably the most non-sexual sexual thing I've ever done."

"I was trying to keep it as non-sexual as possible, honestly."

"I know, you want to wait until marriage. So…I think it means more that you would kind of go against what you believe in and tempt yourself, just for my sake."

A contemplative look came over him. "I wouldn't say that." He made his way to the edge of the tub and sat up on it.

Puzzled, Astrid stood and fetched two towels for them. "What do you mean?"

Hiccup took the towel and wrapped up in it, as did she. "I'm going through and re-reading the Bible right now, and I'm in John, chapter 13. Right before Jesus is crucified. He takes time to wash his disciples feet. In Israel, all the roads are dusty and everyone wears sandals. So feet are the most disgusting part of the body. But Jesus humbles himself to wash them, to show them that he's equal to them. I was trying to show…by washing you, that I don't think any less of you. You're still my princess. And I wanted you see me vulnerable too. Did that come across?"

"Absolutely." She smiled. "I know you weren't just trying to sneak a peek."

He blushed as he grinned mischievously. "I did get a good look, though."

"Like what you saw?"

"Uh, duh? You're the most beautiful woman I've ever met."

She grinned. "Aw thanks!"

They turned their backs to each other while they dressed. Astrid tied her wet hair up in a bun on top of her head. When they were ready, Hiccup took her by the hand and led her to his room.

Toothless was already taking up the bottom half of the mattress.

"What a surprise!" Hiccup said, feigning emotion. Astrid chuckled, before Hiccup scooped her up into his arms. She let out a surprised shriek. "Hiccup!"

"I got you!" He laughed warmly, his arms tightening around her. Only a few steps later, he dropped her onto his bed, and then leaned over her. "I swear, you are the most beautiful creature on this earth."

Coupled with the look he was giving her, the words lit up butterflies in her stomach.

"Hiccup?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

He leaned in a gave her a smoldering kiss, the kind that made her toes curl. "I love you too," he spoke when he pulled away. He leaned down and rested his head in the crook of her neck.

Astrid quietly thread her fingers through his damp hair and listened to the labored breathing in her ear. Then she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him down to lay against her.

Here in this quiet moment, they could be safe in their little bubble, but the wages of sin and death gnawed at the edges and fought to get in.

"I'm scared." Astrid finally admitted.

Hiccup raised his head to look down at her, tears in his eyes. "I'm terrified."

"Hold me?" She whispered.

"Only if you hold me back."

Together, they burrowed under the sheets, and wrapped their arms around each other. It wasn't the most comfortable, but it was the most _comforting_. Tonight would be the worst. Their harrowing deeds pressed in on all sides. But they had each other, and for now, that's all they needed.

—

"Turkey's done!" Gobber's shout of enthusiasm startled everyone as Astrid dropped a handful of forks with a clatter.

"The green bean casserole will be just another 5 minutes." Stoick stated, looking at the timer. "I'll go wake Val."

"Astrid, where's your Uncle?" Gobber asked, transferring the bird to a platter.

Before the girl could respond, the door bell rang. "There he is!"

"I got it!" Hiccup answered the door and greeted Finn warmly.

There was a small moment of chaos where everyone worked to put things on the table and find seats, while Finn was properly introduced to Stoick and Valka. Hugs and handshakes were exchanged, and Finn's wine found a home on the counter with the rest of the alcohol.

The table was set, candles were lit, and everyone settled in.

"Let's give thanks," Stoick urged, holding out his hand. Everyone joined hands.

Astrid was expecting the Lord's prayer, or something similar, but instead, Stoick started singing.

 _Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul_

 _Thank you, Lord, for making me whole_

 _Thank you, Lord, for giving to me_

 _Thy great salvation so rich and free_


	18. December 10, 2016

Before we get into the chapter, I want to talk to you as a human.

As a writer and an artist, my job and my livelihood is to put my heart out on a platter (or the Internet) and wait for the knife. And for some reason, I like this arrangement. I love writing FanFiction, I love the whole process. And if you follow me, you'll notice I've been reaching out into other fandoms to exercise. This story is so rich and complexed, and I still love it, but there was a disconnect whenever I tried to work on it. Then my mentor sent me this nugget of wisdom from David Foster Wallace. For anyone that wants to be a writer, I hope you read it.

"In the beginning, when you first start out trying to write fiction, the whole endeavor's about fun. You don't expect anybody else to read it. You're writing almost wholly to get yourself off. To enable your own fantasies and deviant logics and to escape or transform parts of yourself you don't like. And it works – and it's terrific fun. Then, if you have good luck and people seem to like what you do, and you actually start to get paid for it, and get to see your stuff professionally typeset and bound and blurbed and reviewed and even (once) being read on the a.m. subway by a pretty girl you don't even know it seems to make it even more fun. For a while. Then things start to get complicated and confusing, not to mention scary. Now you feel like you're writing for other people, or at least you hope so. You're no longer writing just to get yourself off, which — since any kind of masturbation is lonely and hollow — is probably good. But what replaces the onanistic motive? You've found you very much enjoy having your writing liked by people, and you find you're extremely keen to have people like the new stuff you're doing. The motive of pure personal starts to get supplanted by the motive of being liked, of having pretty people you don't know like you and admire you and think you're a good writer. Onanism gives way to attempted seduction, as a motive. Now, attempted seduction is hard work, and its fun is offset by a terrible fear of rejection. Whatever "ego" means, your ego has now gotten into the game. Or maybe "vanity" is a better word. Because you notice that a good deal of your writing has now become basically showing off, trying to get people to think you're good. This is understandable. You have a great deal of yourself on the line, writing — your vanity is at stake. You discover a tricky thing about fiction writing; a certain amount of vanity is necessary to be able to do it all, but any vanity above that certain amount is lethal.

At some point you find that 90% of the stuff you're writing is motivated and informed by an overwhelming need to be liked. This results in shitty fiction. And the shitty work must get fed to the wastebasket, less because of any sort of artistic integrity than simply because shitty work will cause you to be disliked. At this point in the evolution of writerly fun, the very thing that's always motivated you to write is now also what's motivating you to feed your writing to the wastebasket. This is a paradox and a kind of double-bind, and it can keep you stuck inside yourself for months or even years, during which period you wail and gnash and rue your bad luck and wonder bitterly where all the fun of the thing could have gone.

The smart thing to say, I think, is that the way out of this bind is to work your way somehow back to your original motivation — fun. And, if you can find your way back to fun, you will find that the hideously unfortunate double-bind of the late vain period turns out really to have been good luck for you. Because the fun you work back to has been transfigured by the extreme unpleasantness of vanity and fear, an unpleasantness you're now so anxious to avoid that the fun you rediscover is a way fuller and more large-hearted kind of fun. It has something to do with Work as Play. Or with the discovery that disciplined fun is more than impulsive or hedonistic fun. Or with figuring out that not all paradoxes have to be paralyzing. Under fun's new administration, writing fiction becomes a way to go deep inside yourself and illuminate precisely the stuff you don't want to see or let anyone else see, and this stuff usually turns out (paradoxically) to be precisely the stuff all writers and readers everywhere share and respond to, feel. Fiction becomes a weird way to countenance yourself and to tell the truth instead of being a way to escape yourself or present yourself in a way you figure you will be maximally likable. This process is complicated and confusing and scary, and also hard work, but it turns out to be the best fun there is.

The fact that you can now sustain the fun of writing only by confronting the very same unfun parts of yourself you'd first used writing to avoid or disguise is another paradox, but this one isn't any kind of bind at all. What it is is a gift, a kind of miracle, and compared to it the rewards of strangers' affection is as dust, lint."

—

"It's snowing!" Tuff screamed at the top of his lungs.

"About time," stated Astrid, from the counter. "It hasn't snowed properly since thanksgiving."

"I say, we go dune sledding on Sunday." Tuff proposed. "Or, we could hook up the sled to my four-wheeler and ride around in the field behind my house. What do you guys say?"

Hiccup, who was now a mere shadow of his former shelf, smiled slightly. "Um, you know, that could be fun. What do you think Astrid?"

Hiccup always asked her permission to have fun these days. Because he felt like he didn't deserve it himself. Which was a retched way to live. And she told him as much. Still, the look of guilt never washed away from his face. "I think that sounds like a great idea." She smiled back.

"Awesome! I'll make sure to get the sleds. I'll text ya later with the details."

Astrid was unbelievably grateful that it was winter and their friends were mostly oblivious. She didn't need anyone asking about why she and Hiccup had lost so much weight, or why Hiccup was always exhausted. The obvious answer is that he couldn't sleep. The more complicated answer was that the lie was literally swallowing him whole.

Jail or not, she couldn't take it anymore.

On the way home, both were quiet, before Astrid finally spoke. "We should tell Heather."

The car swerved slightly. Astrid couldn't tell if it was black ice, or shock. "What?"

"We can't keep going on like this. We have to tell someone. If anyone, it should be Heather. She would understand the best."

Hiccup's eyes never left the road, but she could see how fiercely he held the steering wheel. "I…" He began. "I understand."

"I think you'll feel better."

"Will you?"

She pursed her lips. "Yeah."

"Okay. I'll call her when we get home, and invite her over."

Astrid nodded, tension leaving her shoulders.

—

True to his word, as soon as Hiccup pulled into the garage, he took out his phone and called Heather.

" _Hey Hiccup_ ," she responded on the other end of the line.

"Hey Heather…" He hesitated.

" _Is something wrong_?"

"Um…sort of. Are you busy tonight?"

" _Tonight, no. I get out of work in an hour. Why?_ "

"I was just wondering…if you would be willing to come over? Astrid and I want to talk to you about something. It's…about Scott."

Heather was silent.

Astrid leaned in close to listen.

Finally she responded. " _Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that too. I'll come over after work. See you then._ "

Hiccup released a sigh. "Okay, see you then."

He hung up the phone and sat in his chair for a moment, unwilling to move. "It begins."

"Yeah."

"Astrid."

"Hiccup?"

"I love you, always."

"As do I." She smiled back in return.

The duo walked inside, to see Valka working on dinner. "Hello my darling children!" She responded with mirth.

" **Hi mom** ," they responded in unison.

"I'm making spaghetti for dinner. Sound good?"

"Sounds great," smiled Hiccup. "Um, Heather is coming over in like an hour. So, can you make a little extra?"

"Of course! Anyone is welcome at our table. Any particular reason for the visit?"

Hiccup looked away. "I just thought it would be a nice gesture."

Valka, as a mother, knew immediately when her son was lying. But for once, she decided not to push it. "It's nice of you. She must be lonely."

"Yeah…" added Astrid. "Lonely…"

The kids withdrew to Hiccup's room, to plan what they were going to say when Heather arrived.

All the while, Valka speculated.

—

An hour later, Stoick returned home from work. A few minutes after that, Heather arrived, all full of smiles. Truth be told, when Hiccup invited her over, she was ecstatic to come. There was never a warmer house then the Haddocks. Hiccup and Astrid greeted her with hugs. While Hiccup held her, he whispered. "We'll talk after dinner."

She nodded against him.

Valka's spaghetti was…interesting, to say the least. Astrid had gotten used to the woman's cooking. Not to say it was bad, it was better than her own mother's…but it was always…interesting. She always tried to improve on something, as the case this evening when she added cinnamon to the sauce.

Heather ate it without complaint, just thankful to be eating with company.

Hiccup, despite being hungry as he always was, just pushed a meatball around on his plate. What was the point if he was just going to throw it up later?

"Why Hiccup, is something wrong? You've barely touched your food." Valka asked, motherly concern radiating from her.  
" _Yeah Hiccup_ ," Scott spoke from the empty seat at the end of the table. " _Is there something wrong_?"

Hiccup glanced up from his plate to make eye contact with the apparition. This had been happening for about a week now, and Hiccup was close to his breaking point. Yet, he would not respond to the ghost, since it was only an illusion of his own sleep deprived mind. He only glared at it.

"I'm fine, just not very hungry." He responded to his mother, politely.

"You haven't been hungry for a while now. Are you feeling well?"

Scott spoke again, " _I'm kind of hungry, not very thirsty though. I've got all the water I could ever want_."

"It must be a bug," Hiccup answered, interrupting. He hadn't mentioned these ghastly visits to Astrid, or anyone for that matter.

" _Must be nice_ ," Scott went on. " _Being warm, and eating. Speaking. Having a nice family…and here you are, eating diner with my wife and my girlfriend. You just won't be content until you take everything from me, will you?_ "

"They weren't yours to begin with…" Hiccup muttered under his breath.

"Did you say something?" Asked Astrid.

"Uh, no, just making a mental note to myself."  
"Gotcha."

Scott called out, getting his attention. " _Do you want me to leave? Am I bothering you?_ "

Hiccup didn't respond.

Another conversation was happening between his parents and Heather, but Hiccup was just trying to tune all sounds out. But it was Scott's grating voice that pierced through everything.

" _Oh go on Hiccup, go ahead and tell everyone what's bothering you. After all, you've got nothing to feel guilty about. Right? Right?_ "

If looks could kill. Hiccup glared down the table at the beast that tormented his awaking life. He nearly bit his own tongue in frustration.

" _I know what you're thinking. Rational thought is trying it's best to take over and get me to leave. How dare I bother you after all I did? Pretty hypocritical, huh? Because of course, I didn't feel bad about cheating on Heather with Astrid. I didn't feel bad about attacking you in the dead of night. So why should you feel bad about dumping my body in the lake? Is it that you feel so impure, Mr. High and Mighty? You feel like you have crashed down to earth from your lofty place of perfection?_ "

"I'm far from perfect." Hiccup thought to himself.

This thought made Scott go silent, and when Hiccup raised his tired eyes from his cold spaghetti, the ghost was gone.

Hiccup breathed a sigh of relief.

—

After dinner, Hiccup, Astrid and Heather retired to the basement. All was quiet as Hiccup made sure the door was closed and that Stoick and Valka were engrossed in a Christmas movie upstairs.

When Hiccup finally came and sat on the couch next to Astrid, Heather could see the mounting pressure in his shoulders. He simply swallowed and rubbed his legs in a nervous tick.

"So…" Heather began. "About Scott…"

"Yeah," added Astrid.

"Before you say what you have to say, I…wanted to talk to you guys about something that's been bothering me."

"O-Oh?"

"Yeah…the police said it was a suicide…but I know Scott. He…" She hummed in thought, and took out her phone. "He sent me a message the day he went missing, it said, ' _Heather i know you'll probably never forgive me and i understand. Just wanted you to know that im sorry for being the worst. ill be out of your way soon.'"_

Hiccup and Astrid just listened.

"The thing is…Scott and I weren't on friendly terms at the time. We were both extremely mad at each other. And he's the kind of person to hold onto a grudge. He was…arrogant. He wouldn't apologize…and he wouldn't commit suicide." She shook her head. "It just…I think…it might have been foul play." She sighed. "I mean, I don't have any evidence to support it, but he and David did piss off a lot of people. But it just feels…off. You know?"

Hiccup and Astrid looked at each other, before nodding.

"Back in November," Hiccup began. "After Astrid's father passed away, I invited her to come with me to Africa, and offered her the basement suite so she could save her rent money."

Heather crossed her legs. "I remember."

"So," Astrid continued. "We went to my house and began packing up my stuff…and Scott showed up."

A clear dread came over Heather's face as the situation dawned on her.

Hiccup continued, "I was sitting in the kitchen, taking a break, when Scott spotted me and attacked me. And…we fought. Astrid tackled him and got him off of me, but then I tackled him back. It was all kind of a blur."

When he hesitated, Astrid continued. "Scott had tried to strangle me, and then went in to strangle Hiccup. I heard him shout, 'I hate you' and that he was going to kill him. So I grabbed a skillet and hit him in the head to knock him out." She rubbed her arm uncomfortably, and closed her eyes in shame. "Only afterwards, there was a bunch of blood coming from his head and he…I killed him."

Heather was wide-eyed and slack-jawed. But didn't say anything else.  
Hiccup took over, "since his dad is a judge, I…I convinced Astrid not to call the police and I went and hid the body."

"Where?" Heather voiced.

"I took Eret's boat out on the lake, and dumped him way out there."

Heather leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees while her folded hands covered her mouth.

"I'm sorry we dropped this on you," Hiccup said, "I just thought…we thought you should know."

"Thank you." She said finally. "I know it was an accident, but…I honestly thought that Scott dying was the only way I was going to get peace from him."

"Was it that bad?" Hiccup asked with a cringe.

"He was calling me at home and work with threatening messages. He messaged my friends and family to turn them against me…it was just a nightmare. So…thank you. Thank you so much." She dissolved into tears.

Hiccup and Astrid both came around her and hugged her tightly.

"And it sounds so horrible to be thanking you for something like that, but I never thought I'd have peace of mind ever again!" She wiped her cheeks. "And his life insurance policy was still awarded to me…it wasn't much, but I paid off our mortgage, and that's something I don't have to worry about anymore…" She shook her head, sniffling. "I feel like the maiden trapped in the tower and you two are the knights that slew the dragon keeping me hostage." She broke out of their hug, her head clearing. "But I still don't understand why you felt the need to hide the body."

"Soren Jorgenson is a very powerful man."

"Right, but the penalty for hiding the body is higher than manslaughter."

"It is?"

"Yeah…" she thought, "I'd have to look it up, but I think it's around five years. It's one of those things I vaguely remember from my criminal justice course."

Hiccup blanched, a frown coming over his face.

"Well, I won't tell anyone." Heather assured, collecting herself. "This was an accident. And I know you. Both of you are kind and gentle spirits that want nothing but the best for mankind. But if I may…Hiccup, I still think you should tell your dad. If just for closure."

Hiccup was quiet, thinking.

"Are you sure you're…okay with this?" Astrid prodded.

"I don't know…" Heather shrugged with a mirthless laugh. "I think I'm in shock!" She shook her head. "You two covered up a murder, but of a truly evil man. I just…who am I to judge? I won't say anything, since this…isn't my problem anymore." That final sentence was said with freedom, and peace. "He's gone."

" _Bitch, I might be_." Scott spoke from the corner of the room. " _And you're happy about it? Your husband died, bitch. Maybe if Astrid hadn't killed me first, you would have, huh_?"

Hiccup frowned heavily in his direction, full of contempt.

" _What? I'm just saying what you're thinking, Hiccup_." He smirked, " _because, as you often remind yourself, I'm just a figment of your imagination_."

Astrid took a deep breath, and managed to smile. "I feel…relieved." She told Heather, honestly. "It feels good to talk about it, and let it out. You know? And knowing that you…don't hate us…it's just…nice."

" _But you don't feel any better, do you Hiccup_?" Scott was sitting on the coffee table in front of him. " _This didn't help at all, did it_?"

Hiccup closed his eyes and rubbed a hand down his face in exhaustion. Scott's voice just seemed to suck the life out of him. He peered over to Astrid and Heather who were now talking animatedly, with smiles on their faces. The bags under Astrid's eyes seemed to stick out to him. If this talk made her feel better, then it was all worth it.

—

It had been two days since Hiccup got any concrete sleep, and tonight was no exception. At around 4 am, he stood in the kitchen waiting for Toothless to finish a steak.

In the dim light, the only sound was the quiet smacking of Toothless' jaws and the quiet hum of the refrigerator. Hiccup leaned against the counter, the cold granite chilling his arms. Outside, the world looked like a snow globe, and all was calm.

But within Hiccup, the guilt continued to swirl like an endless sea.

"I don't know how much more of this I can take, bud."

" _You don't know how much more you can take? You don't even know_!" A sickly voice came from behind him.

"Oh, would you just give it a rest?" Hiccup responded, not bothering to turn around.

" _I can't sleep, Cousin. The current just keeps spinning and spinning me. I'm so tired…_ "

Hiccup glanced back only to gasp in horror.

The ghost behind him appeared as a bloated, rotting corpse. Bones exposed were the flesh had been torn by fish and sharp rocks. As he spoke, filthy black water dripped from his mouth and eyes and pooled on the floor.

Hiccup backed up against the counter, wanting to run, but frozen in place.

" _How could you do this to me? To your own family? What about my mother? Does she know my restless spirit is trapped in the lake? Does she know I never found peace_?"

"Stop. You're not here." Hiccup clenched his eyes shut. "This isn't real."

" _I died before my time, Hiccup. I still had so much to live for…I still could have turned my life around._ "

"It's just an illusion." He whispered.

Liquid touched his bare feet and his eyes shot open, only to see the floor covered in the inky water that still poured from Scott. Hiccup hopped up to the counter, only for the fluid to pull him back down like tar.

" _Don't fight it, Hiccup. This is your guilt, and there's no way to escape it_."

"Leave me alone!" He shouted.

The liquid bubbled up, crawling up his legs.

" _I will forever be your companion, tormenting your dreams and filling every hour of your day_." The apparition stepped closer, easily wading through the gunk that flooded the room. The appearance wasn't like Scott anymore, and the voice sounded different, but still familiar. " _You'll never be free_."

"Shut up! Leave me alone!" He was now screaming, blind to the rest of the world.

" _I'll never leave you alone_." The ghost said, grabbing his face tenderly. The black liquid dripped out of it's eye socket to reveal familiar steely green eyes. " _Because I am you._ "

Hiccup went to scream, but the bony hand closed around his throat. Only strangled noises escaped. He cried for help.

" _I'm everything that you hate about yourself. I'm the evil within you. The sin that overwhelms you in your weakest moments._ "

Hiccup clawed at the hand holding him, tears leaking from his eyes. "Let…me go…"

" _As long as you hold this secret, you will drown_."

Distantly, he heard his father cry out for him. "Hiccup?! What's wrong?!"

" _What will it be? Jail?_ "

"Hiccup! Say something!" Astrid called.

" _Or death?_ "

Hiccup took a shuttering breath, breaking through the horrors of his own mind. " **I killed him! I killed Scott!** "

Everything that had been haunting him disappeared, and he stood in the kitchen again, his legs trembling and his body drenched in sweat. His family surrounded him.

"What did you say?"


	19. December 11, 2016

Just a quick reminder to everyone, if you have a question, you have to have an account for me to respond to it. I can't reply to Anons.

—

"What did you say?" Stoick said, his voice barely a whisper.

"I killed Scott." The words vomited out of his mouth of their own accord. "He attacked me while we were at Astrid's and he was going to kill me and he had his hands on my throat—"

"Slow down, Hiccup." Valka soothed gently, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Hiccup shrugged away from her.

"He's dead because of me! I'm a liar and a fraud! I did horrible things!" His hands came up to his face. In his eyes, there was still blood on them.

Astrid butted in. "He didn't kill Scott, I did." She stepped up to Hiccup and took his hand, holding it fiercely. "Don't take blame for what you didn't do."

He shuttered, trembling in her hand. "Astrid…"

Slowly, with a confidence she didn't know she had, Astrid met Stoick's cold calculating eyes. "Scott attacked Hiccup, and made to kill him. He had his hands on his throat, and I hit him with a frying pan to knock him out. Except, I hit him too hard." She shamefully looked down to her feet. "It was an accident."

Stoick just watched the two carefully before Hiccup continued. "I was scared. So I convinced Astrid not to call the police, and I…I dumped the body in the lake."

Silence reigned supreme for a long time.

Then Valka voiced the question they were all thinking. "But honey… _why_ didn't you call the police? You know you don't need need to be afraid of your father…"

It would have been the smart thing to do. It made the most sense, and Stoick was chief of police. Now Astrid was beginning to second guess herself too.

"It's because of Cami." Hiccup finally answered.

Astrid looked surprised. This was a different reason he had spoken about before. "Cami? Oh…that's right. She was a friend of yours over here, wasn't she?"

Stoick let out a knowing sound before starting to pace the kitchen.

"I'm sorry Astrid, I should have told you about this sooner. I just don't like talking about it."

"No one does." Stoick said under his breath. "It's disgraceful."

Toothless came and laid at Hiccup's feet, and he crouched to pet him. "Three years ago, my friend Cami showed up at my house in the middle of the night, beaten to a pulp. She came to us because she had been raped by two young men who were later identified as Scott and his friend David."

Astrid's eyes were wide with horror. "Three years ago…This must have happened right before I came home from school…"

"Yeah. No wonder you didn't know about it." Hiccup huffed. "They went on trial, and because of Soren's influence in the city and the best lawyer in town, Scott and David were cleared of all offenses. There was substantial evidence toward them and everything."

"It wasn't right." Said Stoick with a hiss. "Cami was in the hospital for days. Then as soon as she could, she moved away. No one really blames her for it."

"What about Heather?"  
"She knew about it, but didn't think Scott was guilty." Hiccup shrugged. "She was in love with him, after all."

No one had words. This entire situation was a mess from top to bottom. Personally and systemically, it was one festering wound.

"So…I guess I'm going to jail?" Hiccup tried to sound casual…but it just sounded utterly defeated.

Stoick never said a word. He just turned up his lip, and went back to bed.

—

Days passed, and Stoick had yet to speak more than a few words to his son or Astrid. They barely got a "Good morning," or "be safe," out of him. It was agonizing.

The couple just had to go to work and pretend like nothing was wrong. Which was especially difficult when there was no one coming in.

The air in the store was stale and dusty. The fluorescent lights were dim, needing to be changed soon. The cloudy winter sky cast a gray hue over the antique counter. All the magic the store once held had seemingly left with the warm summer sun.

Hiccup swept the immaculate floor idly, like any motivation to do anything had fled from his body.

Astrid leaned on the counter, her head in her hands. "Don't you have those two rows in the back to do?"

"Yeah," he spoke in a sigh. "But I don't want to."

She couldn't argue with that. Instead, she just watched as the broom danced across the floor. The bristles moved slowly, caressing the wood in a soft touch, with a whispering scratch echoing behind.

A soft bass of a guitar started to play and the broom's dance came to an end.

"I fixed the radio!" Tuff shouted from the ceiling.

The music grew louder, and a voice joined.

 _When the night has come_

 _And the land is dark_

 _And the moon is the only light we see_

Hiccup leaned the broom against the shelf and made his way over to where Astrid stood, a blank look on his face.

 _No I won't be afraid_

 _No I won't be afraid_

 _Just as long as you stand, stand by me_

"Hiccup?" She asked, standing up straight.

He held his hand out, beckoning her forward. She took it, and let her fingers curl around his palm.

 _And darling, darling stand by me_

 _Oh, now, now, stand by me_

 _Stand by me, stand by me_

Gently, he pulled her into his arms. She laid her head upon his shoulder, as she was always comfortable in his embrace.

 _If the sky that we look upon_

 _Should tumble and fall_

 _And the mountain should crumble to the sea_

Hiccup began to sway, ever so slightly, keeping her hand in his. It was warm and soft and delicate…all that she ever needed.

 _I won't cry, I won't cry_

 _No I won't shed a tear_

 _Just as long as you stand, stand by me_

His head nudged against hers, his lips laying against her crown. "I love you." He whispered.

"I love you too," she returned.

 _And darling, darling stand by me_

 _Oh, stand by me_

 _Stand by me, stand by me, stand by me_

As the song came to an end, the two heard sniffling and turned quickly to see Gobber and Tuff watching from the corner.

"It's so precious." Gobber sniveled. "They grow up so fast!"

"Makes you almost believe that anyone can find love!" Added Tuff.

"Hey! What is that supposed to mean?!" Hiccup frowned.

Astrid, unbothered by the comment, just looked up at him. Relief beyond measure captured her. Hiccup had a light in his eyes again. Despite the anxiety they were both dealing with, the secret he had kept bottled up was finally free, and he could begin to heal. It would take some time yet, but there was still hope between them.

No matter what, things would work out okay in the end. And Hiccup believed that mantra even as Stoick entered the door.

"Oh, dad." Hiccup stated in surprise, stepping away from Astrid. "Can I help you find something?"

"Stoick!"

"Gobber!" The chief's disposition changed drastically, which was a bummer for the teens. "Sorry to inconvenience you, but I need to borrow your star employee's for a few hours."

This was news, and very unpleasant news at that. What was going on?

"Oh, it's no problem! We haven't had a soul come in all day."

"Great! I'll bring them back when we're done."

"Sounds great! Have fun!"

Hiccup and Astrid stiffly followed him to his squad car, and slid into the back seat, separated by the reenforced glass.

"Relax, you two." Stoick said, with a fatherly kindness that they had missed in the passing days. "It's nothing bad."

Hiccup took a desperate gulp and nodded.

They didn't drive far. In fact, they could have just walked. But it was cold out, and he supposed Stoick wanted to keep the destination a secret. Together, the three entered a small office building. There was a long hallway painted beige, with marble floors and ambient lighting.

"This way." Stoick stated, walking down the hall, his shoes clacking against the marble. He opened a door on the left, and gestured them inside. There was a small waiting room with a couch. A small television sat opposite, with Disney movies piled up around it. Soft, soothing music was playing.

A tall, dark, imposing man came from the room opposite to them. He had dark eyes, and a hook nose, but none the less, smiled. "Hello," he said with an accent. "I'm Dr. Ago Bludvist. Who's first?"

Hiccup looked back to his father with horror.

"This is standard procedure." Stoick answered simply.

Astrid stepped up. "I'll go first."

The man smiled a little bit wider, and gestured into the other room. It was a standard office, small, with a desk and two chairs across from each other.

Astrid sat down, relaxing into the cushion.

"How are you?"

"I'm good."

"Good." He noted, looking at a blue folder in front of him. "Astrid Hofferson?"

"That's me."

"Alright, I've been briefed on the situation, and everything said in here is confidential. I'm only asking these questions for a psychological examination."

Astrid sighed a little, her shoulders sinking.

"Will you tell me about what happened? You can be brief."

Astrid swallowed. "I accidentally killed my ex-boyfriend when he showed up uninvited at my house. My boyfriend dumped his body in the lake."

Dr. Ago wrote this down. "How did the death occur?"

"Scott was strangling Hiccup, my boyfriend, and I hit him with a frying pan to knock him out. I just hit him too hard."

"Do you regret it?"

Astrid had asked herself this question a few times. "No." She answered resolutely. "In the last few weeks since then, I've been finding out all these things that Scott did. Like, he raped a girl, and he cheated on his wife, who he _abused_ , with several women…I think the world is better off without him."

"Would you do it again?"

"No." She shook her head. "I know what I just said, but killing someone is just…deplorable. I am sad it had to come to it."

"What are you most afraid of now?"

Astrid crossed her arms. "I…don't know. I was afraid of losing Hiccup, I think. I've lost a lot of people in my life, and I really care about him, I didn't want this accident to drive him away."

" _Was_? Past tense?"

"Yeah, he proved to me that he still loves me and he feels equally responsible for this."

"That's good," said the doctor, smiling warmly. "It's nice to feel like you aren't alone in something."

His words were reassuring, and she grinned in agreement. "Yeah."

"What are you expecting to happen? Now that Chief Haddock knows."

"I'm expecting jail time."

"Really?"

"Yeah…because, we should have called the police when it happened. But instead we panicked."

"Who was the one who came up with the idea to hide the body?"

"It was Hiccup," she said, begrudgingly. "But I didn't protest, so I'm at fault too."

"Do you think he should go to jail for hiding the body?"

"He probably will. But if it was up to me," She shook her head. "I don't think he should be punished at all. Yeah, hiding Scott's body was a reckless thing to do…but Hiccup always did what he could to protect me. Hiding the body was just his idea of trying to keep me safe too."

"Did he ever say why he decided to do that?"

"At the time, he said it was because Scott's dad was a really powerful man with a lot of influence. It wasn't until later that I found out more detail. Scott got away with rape, even with substantial evidence against him. Hiccup was scared because I can't afford a lawyer."

The doctor looked at her with an unreadable expression before he continued his notes. "You said you lost a lot of people in your life, can you expound on that for me?"

"My dad died this year of Parkinson's."

"I'm very sorry to hear that, were you close?"

"I'd say so. I'm going to school for nursing, because I wanted to take care of him. But he passed away before I could get my degree."

"When will you graduate?"

"I technically already did, but I walk in April."

"I see. When did he pass?"

"In October."

"That's not too long ago," the man assessed.

"Yeah, but he's been in Hospice for a few years now. It…wasn't sudden. But it was still sooner than I was expecting."

"Have you gotten any sort of therapy since then?"

"No…I can't afford it."

"What do you do for a job?"

"I'm a cashier."

"And what about your mother?"

"She's not in the picture. When I left for college in my freshman year, she dumped my dad in Hospice and eloped with her boss."

Dr. Ago rubbed the bridge of his nose with pinched fingers. "And you never had therapy for that either?"

"No sir." She watched as he scribbled with a furrowed brow. "Should I have?"

"Perhaps. May I ask you more about your mother? Or is it a sore topic?"

"Well…it is. But maybe it's best if I got it off my chest."

—

Astrid had been in the office for about twenty minutes already, and Hiccup was in agony. He couldn't hear what was going on, but he worried all the same. His foot tapped manically.

"Relax, son. It's not an interrogation. You already confessed to killing him. Unless there's something else to be guilty about?"

"No, I already told you the story." Hiccup exhaled deeply, trying to relax. "I'm just not keen on talking to a stranger about my feelings. And I don't think Astrid is either."

"You both have been through something traumatic. And psychological examinations are standard in any criminal case."

The foot tapping was back. "Are we going to jail?"

Stoick didn't respond.

"You haven't said anything to us about the case. Are we going to court? Are we getting a lawyer? What about Astrid?"

"Hiccup, as chief of police, I am obligated to stay silent on the matter."

That hurt. Hiccup frowned heavily, shrinking into his seat.

"But as your father," the man continued. "I'm taking care of it."

—

"…and I had a week to move out. My uncle took me in for a while, but I didn't like inconveniencing him, so I moved out after two months."

"Was that the last time you talked to your mother, then?"

"No, she blew into town when my dad died. She stayed through the funeral, and then disappeared. That was the last time."

"Do you hate her?"

"Kind of."

"Enough to kill her?"

"God no! I mean, she's my mom, you know? I still love her…I just hate the things she's done, and how she treated my dad. My dad didn't do anything wrong." She felt tears pricking at her eyes. "The day I came home, I was so devastated that everything had changed…I wanted to reach out to someone. So I called Scott, and we slept together. That's kind of what started this whole mess."

"So, you blame your mother for Scott's death?"

"Yes and no. Yes, because her actions made me reach out to someone toxic. But no, because _I'm_ the one that dropped the frying pan. I blame Scott more than anyone else, because he was trying to kill Hiccup."

"So, you killed him in self-defense?"

"Yes, and to save Hiccup."

"Have you ever felt the urge or planned to kill another human being?"

"No, sir. Never."

"Had you ever felt the urge to kill Scott previously?"

"No. I never felt the urge to kill him ever. I just wanted him to stop hurting Hiccup!"

"Okay," the doctor spoke gently, seeing Astrid was getting riled up. "And how are your feelings towards Scott, currently?"

She glanced down to her toes, thinking through the question. "I don't know…I don't really have any sort of feeling. Relief, I guess."

"Relief?"

"Because he can't hurt me or Heather, or anyone else, ever again. And because the truth is out now, and even if I go to jail, I won't be lying anymore."

Concern was vaguely in his eyes. "Did he hurt you?"

"Yes. Several times, physically and emotionally."

The doctor nodded knowingly, and scratched in his book. "Alright, do you have any history of mental illness in your family?"

"I think my mom's neurotic." She chuckled half-heartedly. "But nothing else that I know of."

"Okay. Then, I think we're done here." Dr. Ago closed his notebook and stood.

Astrid breathed a sigh of relief. Despite everything, just talking about the ghosts of her past and the baggage her mom left on her made her feel better. It gave her the space to think, and to put things into perspective.

She was looking at jail, for a few years to life. It was vague, but now she could prepare for it.

The doctor led her back out to the waiting room, and Hiccup stood quickly. Astrid gave him a reassuring smile, and then took up the seat he had been occupying.

As Hiccup followed the doctor into the office. Astrid breathed a sigh and relaxed into her seat.

"Did it go alright?" Asked Stoick.

"Yeah," Astrid replied. "It's all out now."

Stoick reached over and patted her leg lovingly. "Glad to hear it lass."

—

"Please, have a seat."

Hiccup sat down in the chair, and despite it's plushness, he was uncomfortable. He crossed his ankles and sat on his hands.

"Would you like anything to drink?"

He shook his head, unable to respond.

"Okay," said the doctor, taking his seat. He pulled out a red folder. "You're Henry "Hiccup" Haddock then, correct?"

"Yeah."

Dr. Ago looked over the documents in front of him with a critical eye. "Your father has briefed me on the situation. But there's no need to worry, I am sworn to secrecy in my profession. You're just here for psychological examination."

Hiccup nodded, coming to that conclusion already.

"Alright Henry, would you like to tell me what happened? Briefly is fine."

"Don't you already know?"

"I want to hear it from you."

Hiccup nodded. "My girlfriend and I accidentally killed her ex-boyfriend, and I dumped his body in the lake."

Dr. Ago nodded, writing a note down. "You killed him together?"

"He attacked me, and then she tackled him off of me…I'm kind of fuzzy on the details, but we both fought him."

"Who was the one who dealt the final blow?"

"Astrid was."

The man nodded. "And did you want to be the one to do that?"

"No, absolutely not…" then he considered a moment. "I mean, if it would clear Astrid of guilt, I would have."

The man seemed intrigued by this answer. "What if Astrid hadn't been present? Would you have killed him?"

"Probably, but only because he was determined to kill me. He yelled it in my face."

"If this ex-boyfriend showed up with no hostile intentions, would you have still killed him?"

"No. It was pure self defense we fought with him."

"Have you ever had the urge to kill him, at any time? Please answer honestly."

Hiccup tensed his shoulders. "A little. I knew Scott my whole life. He's my cousin and I'm friends with his wife. He was dating Astrid while he was married. When I found this out, I was…very upset. I don't think I wanted to kill him, but I definitely wanted to hurt him. Then, the night Astrid broke up with him, Scott had hit her and chased her out of her house. She was bruised and bleeding when she showed up. I was just so angry…I love Astrid, and to see her like that…"

Dr. Ago nodded in understanding. "People are fiercely protective of the people they love."

"Yes, exactly." Hiccup answered, with a sigh. "I think…if anything…the rage was there. But I never planned or had the intent to hurt him."

"Have you ever wanted to kill anyone?"

Hiccup shook his head. "Scott was the only person to ever make me this mad. Even others that ticked me off…I never quite hated them."

"Okay," Dr. Ago nodded. "I know you've had previous therapy for Depression and Anxiety, and a mild case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after you lost your leg."

"Yes, that's correct."

"Why did you stop getting therapy?"

"The nervousness and…sadness of losing my leg went away after time. It doesn't bother me anymore."

"Good good…Do you ever have any bouts of seemingly unreasonable sadness or anxiety?"

"No."

"Any attempts to self harm?"

"No."

"Do you find yourself having mood swings or panic attacks?"

"Not really."

This was all noted in his notebook. "Have you ever seen things or heard voices that weren't actually there?"

Hiccup swallowed, but couldn't speak.

Dr. Ago waited patiently.

"…Yeah, I have…" He finally answered.

"Can you go into more detail?"

"I saw Scott, after he died. He appeared to me, saying stuff to psych me out…"

"What kind of stuff?"

"He accused me of stealing from him, like his wife and his girlfriend…and his life."

"But you aren't the one that killed him," the doctor pressed. "Correct?"

"I…I wasn't the one who hit him."

"If you aren't the one who struck him, why do you feel like you're the guilty party?"

Hiccup was silent. He had no idea how to answer the question.

The doctor noted this and moved on. "How many times did Scott appear?"

"Several times. It got worse as time went on."

"I see. And does he still appear?"

Hiccup shook his head. "No. A few nights ago, I saw him vividly, and he tried to strangle me again…and that's what led me to confess."

The doctor nodded heavily, thinking. "Are you religious?"  
"I was." He said with a shrug. "But I haven't been a very good Christian since that night. I…don't really feel right talking to God like I used to. I'm ashamed of what I've done, and he's…he probably hates me."

The doctor scratched his chin. "That's probably a better conversation to have with your pastor. But I think your guilt is manifesting in auditory and visual hallucinations."

"…can that happen?"

"Yes, the brain is a fantastic organ with the ability to do some amazing things. How has your sleeping been?"

"Not so good. Some times I go days without sleep."

"That would do it." The doctor said with a nod. "Is it because of nightmares? Or too much anxiety?"

"Both." Hiccup said, rubbing his arm. "I can't usually relax, but when I do…I see a lot of disturbing things in my dreams."

"Like what?"

"Um…a lot of body horror. Blood, guts, stuff like that."

"Makes sense." Dr. Ago looked through the documents on his desk. "Especially since you have a history with PTSD. If you aren't medicated for it, it can be manifesting in your sleep."

Hiccup leaned forward, resting his head in his hands.

"Was it just after the murder you were having these nightmares? Or did you have them before?"

"I had them before, when my leg was amputated. But the doctor back then said they were from the medicine."

"And after you stopped taking that medicine, did they go away?"

"…I think so. At least, as I can remember."

Dr. Ago studied him a moment before posing the next question. "what are your thoughts on the human body?"

"Um…what do you mean?"

"Do you ever think about how bodies work and what the insides look like?"  
Hiccup blanched. "A bit. But I'm making prosthetics, so it's justified, right?"

"Do you ever get the urge to dissect bodies?"  
"No! No no, just…I consider human anatomy when I work. Purely just for work."

"Alright." The doctor said with a nod. "Next, I want you to tell me what you thought when you realized Scott was dead."

Hiccup scuffed his prosthetic on the floor. "Um…I don't know. I don't know if I thought anything at all, honestly. I was in shock."

Dr. Ago remained quiet.

"He just looked like he was unconscious. It didn't really set in that he was dead until after I put him in the car and started driving. He exhaled after I hit a bump, and all at once I realized he hadn't been breathing."

"And by then it was too late?"

"Exactly."

"If you could go back in time, would you have called the police?"

Hiccup bit his lip. "No?"

This was a surprise, and the doctor took note of it.

"It's not because…I…" He had trouble finding the words. "It was a system problem. If I had any sort of promise that someone would listen and consider our side, I would have called the police right away. But without giving it more than a few seconds thought, I believed that no matter what we did, no one would accept our self-defense plea."

"Do you still feel that way?"

"Mostly. Now that I've had more time to think it over, I feel like we might be alright…but given this city's track record of siding with the rich and powerful, I don't know."

"But aren't you from a wealthy and powerful family?"

"I am. But Astrid's an orphan."

"Ah yes, and you are basing all your decisions on her well being."

"Yes."  
"Do you think she deserves jail time?"

"Absolutely not! She did nothing wrong!"

"Even though she helped you hide the body?"

Hiccup was quiet, his head in his hands again. "She was scared."

"And she trusted you."

"Yeah…" He whispered. "So I'm crazy?"

"No, no, no, no." The doctor insisted. "From our session, I can clearly see you are clinically sane, but this experience has only exasperated previous illnesses. I highly recommend seeking out treatment."

Hiccup sighed again, not raising his head.

"And, if religion was something you were invested in, I would make amends with God. It might help with the guilt."

Finally, Hiccup nodded and sat up. "Okay."

—

Another full day passed in silence. After the therapy session, Stoick had put the professional wall back up.

But then, the family sat down to dinner. Everyone had their dishes, and they prayed over their food. It wasn't a minute later that Stoick finally spoke.

"You're not going to jail."

Hiccup's fork fell with a clatter, but no other sound was made.

"Scott's death was pronounced as a suicide, and the case was closed. No reason to open it back up."

"But…" Astrid started.

"We confessed. We should go to jail." Hiccup finished.

Stoick took a sip from his drink. "I'm 60 years old this year. In two years, I will retire. I will spend that time doing what I can to fix the corrupt system in this city. If my morally upstanding son doesn't feel safe talking to the police about a self-defense case, then there must be something very wrong. And I've seen it too. Innocent people locked up without evidence, without the right to an attorney, on counts of prejudice. Guilty people with stacks against them walking out scot free. I'll be gathering resources from these slighted families, and when I retire, I will make a case against the courts."

Hiccup, Astrid, and Valka all sat stunned.

"In the mean time," he continued, folding his hands. "I'm letting you two go to Africa, as planned. You will do more good for the world over there than you will ever do in jail. I will be checking in frequently, and it'll be just like community service."

Hiccup swallowed. Could be true…?

"But, I'm afraid most of the profits you'd be making from the prosthetics will have to go to the family of the deceased. Mainly Heather."

Hiccup nodded vehemently, not able to speak, but throughly agreeing with this turn of events.

"Both of you will attend another session with a psychiatrist. We need to make sure you're properly medicated if need be. Especially you Hiccup. Dr. Bludvist noted that you were having trouble with your PTSD."

Hiccup finally choked out a sob. "Thank you! Thank you dad…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Stoick smiled sadly. "Hiccup, I understand. I get it now. I'm sorry I couldn't comfort you earlier…I had to do my job."

Astrid rubbed her tear soaked cheeks. "Are you sure this okay? I can't imagine…"

The chief shook his head. "If anyone finds out I did this, I'd be in so much trouble. But enough is enough. Something has to be done about this corrupt court. I'm just sorry this was what it took." He sighed. "Too be fair, most of the time, the punishment for manslaughter is community service. And I knew Scott, and I have no shadow of a doubt that this was just that. I'm sorry I worried you."

"No, dad. You're fine. You…thank you. Gosh, I don't even know what to say…" he started crying again.

Astrid, who had long given up on trying to stop the waterworks, wrapped her arms around his neck. "It's over…it's finally over."

Whenever 'Stand by Me' comes on, no matter what he's doing or how he feels, my boyfriend will ask me to dance. I thought the song was the most appropriate for the moment.


	20. Author's Note

This was originally a different authors note, but the matter I was addressing has been resolved. The next chapter will be the last, and FF can sometimes be fickle and not allow you to post on a previous chapter even if it was deleted. So I'm making this an author's note so you'll be able to comment and ask questions if you have them on the next chapter.

Thank you everyone that has supported me on this story. It's been really rough and at some points, I just wanted to give up. But your encouragement got me through, and helped me to write what is now a very solid story.

Special thanks to ThisisEntertaining, for being the best, as always.

To Ulcassi, fastmaniac3, curryboh, , warorpeace, Angryhenry, MissPitchPerfect25, Fanwriter02, CajunBear73, Ipperdragon, harrypanther, ADayWithoutLaughterIsADayWasted, and the other 20-30 users who diligently reviewed each chapter and freaked out at my cliffhangers. You guys really make writing worth it.

What can I say? You guys are the best.

Next on the docket, I have to finish my other HTTYD fic, The North Tower. Then I will be taking a brief break from HTTYD to work on my Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts stories. But I'm sure I'll be back soon, since my list of fic ideas is still very very long. I may even publish that random AU I wrote last year. Who knows!?

My goal for this year is to reach 1,000,000 words published on FF. And as of right now, I have 784,396 words. So no matter what, I think you'll be seeing me soon!

Thank you again to all my readers and followers. The next and final chapter of 320 State Street is coming soon!


	21. April 14, 2017

There is a special guest included in this chapter. Also, if you didn't already, the previous chapter has a thank you and a 'where am I going from here' note. Be sure to check it out if you're curious.

—

"So who are we looking for?" Astrid asked, her backpack slung over her shoulder, suitcase in one hand and Stormfly's cage in the other.

"The pastor of the church is picking us up. You can't miss him."

Julius Nyerere International Airport was smaller than O'Hare had been. She peered outside to see palm trees, green green grass, and the bluest sky she'd ever seen, which was quite the difference from the gray dismal early spring weather that they left in Michigan. She was ecstatic to be in shorts.

The flight had gone well enough. Astrid, who had only been out of state a handful of times, was nervous to fly. Luckily, Hiccup was beside her the whole time, his fingers intertwined with hers. Next to him on the other side, was Toothless. Astrid was still completely baffled by the logistics of it, but sure enough, the airline allowed a panther to fly coach. When she asked about it, Hiccup explained that Toothless was a certified service animal, and he in turn was a caregiver for Toothless. It was a double service situation. He and Valka had made the accommodations months ago and it was known in advance that yes, there was a big cat on this flight. No one seemed to mind, since he just sat there, doing his thing. Which was really impressive, for a 20 hour flight. Astrid was more impressed that he could go that long. Eventually, he stretched out across the seats and fell asleep on their laps.

Valka had her own seat mate, Stormfly, in the way of a cage. The bird occasionally sang and made noise, but nothing obnoxious. Valka had a fun time talking to her as well.

After the first hour in the air, Astrid felt herself calm down enough and she began to relax. Still, she held Hiccup's hand, occasionally lifting it to kiss his knuckles.

"There he is!" Called Valka, pointing to an extremely tall man. He held a sign with 'Haddock' written on it. The family rushed over to him, only to be caught up in a hug.

"Mwaba!" Hiccup laughed. "How are you?"

"If it isn't my little Kwikwi! Look at how big you've grown! And who is this pretty girl?"

Astrid held her hand out. "Jambo, I'm Astrid, Hiccup's girlfriend."

"Girlfriend, huh?" He playfully elbowed his friend in the gut, and then took Astrid's hand. "My name is Pastor Mwaba Musonda, but Mwaba is fine. Welcome to the family!" And he yanked her into a hug.

Oh, she was going to like it here.

Mwaba gathered everyone into the church van, where Toothless had plenty of room to stretch out and relax. Not so the case with Hiccup and Astrid, however.

Traffic rules were different here. Mostly a free for all. Not to mention most of the roads weren't paved. Astrid bounced in her seat, fear creeping in every time they took a corner too fast. Stormfly, likewise, squawked when her cage was rattled.

"You okay back there Stormfly?"

" _Earthquake!_ " she cried.

While they were still in the city, Mwaba stopped at a grocer, and they stocked up on food. Astrid was surprised to see that most of the foods she had come to love were no where to be found.

Hiccup had three, 10 gallon jugs of water in a cart. "Do you remember the rules about tap water?"

"It's okay to shower with, but don't drink it."

"Very good," he confirmed. "But even so, you may feel sick until you get used to being here. Whether it's altitude sickness or something in the food…Just let me know if you feel crummy at any point and we'll come home and take a nap. Okay?"

She smiled at him, "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. But you need to let me know if you feel sick too, okay? You're not as immune as you think."

He rolled his eyes. "Okay okay."

Back in the van, Hiccup tapped her shoulder, and held out a dramamine. "You're going to want this," he assured.

"Kanganya is about an hour from here, Astrid." Mwaba explained. "I'll take the scenic route!"

"Yay…" she said, nausea starting to take root in her stomach.

Despite the conditions, she was in awe of the landscape around her. Everything was much different than it had been in the lakeside town in Michigan. Soon, they were in the mountains, climbing up narrow, dizzying roads.

"How far are we from Kilimanjaro?"

"Those are still a few hours north. You and Kwikwi should go sometime!"

"Kwikwi?" she asked her seat mate.

"It's Swahili for 'Hiccup'. They used to call me Kuku, which is the word for chicken…because my name is Henry. Hen…get it?"

"That's…really complicated."

"Hey, complicated is my second middle name." Hiccup said proudly.

"…what's your first middle name?"

"Unnecessarily."

She snorted.

They continued through the mountains, going crazy speeds and weaving around other cars and buses. The landscape seemed to stretch on forever, over mountains and valleys, just rich green framed with terra-cotta soil and dotted with brightly colored stucco buildings. Finally, they pulled off the road and into a cluster of buildings. Some were big, made of cement, bricks, and clay and others were just thatched grassed huts. There were about 20 to 30 homes scattered about the hub.

"This is it! Welcome to Kanganya!" Mwaba gestured out the window, proud of his village.

"There's the church, up there." Hiccup pointed to a building that sat on a cliff, with a sign outside that said, 'Bird Mountain Church'.

"The hospital that you'll be at is about a mile down the road," explained Valka. "But if you don't want to walk it, we have a jeep."

"I can walk it, no problem." Astrid assured. "What about you Hiccup?"

"I'll be fine…most of the time," He shrugged.

As they passed through the village, she spotted a number of big buildings, labelled in English and Swahili.

Then, finally, they turned to the road that went to the church, and veered off slightly into the woods. There, the house Astrid would call home waited. It was decently sized, not as big as Hiccup's house had been back in the US, but still bigger than she was expecting.

"A group of missionaries lived here before us," Hiccup stated as they pulled into the driveway. "They had nine kids. When they retired back to the US, my mom and dad bought the house from them and picked up where they left off."

"It's convenient for our purposes." Valka stated. "Sometimes tragedy befalls the village and people need a place to stay. They never like to intrude, but just having a place to stay for a few weeks makes a difference."

Astrid nodded in understanding.

Mwaba helped carry all the bags into the house, down a long entry way. They passed two closed bedrooms before they got to the living room. Inside, the air was hot and muggy.

"Let me just the A/C running, and we'll open the windows." Valka said, going over to the window unit. "We had everything shut up while we were gone to avoid any bugs getting in."

"Oh right, aren't mosquitos a big deal here?"

Hiccup opened a window on the other side of the room. "In the country, yes. That's why you had to get those vaccinations. But our village is pretty safe, since we're in the mountains." He popped open a second window. "But I wouldn't remove the screen from your window."

"Got it."

There was a loud 'whump' from the roof, and only Astrid jumped. "What was that?"

"Toothless, making himself at home." Hiccup said without hesitation.

"Astrid," Valka beckoned in the entryway. "This will be your room. It's next to Hiccup's, but the floor squeaks, so you two shouldn't try any funny business."

Astrid blushed hotly, while Hiccup whined a pained 'mooooommmmmm!'

Valka laughed and dragged her suitcase to the stairs. "Mwaba and I are going to go meet with the deacons at the church. You two can unpack or rest…whatever you want. I'll be back in about an hour."

Mwaba added, "I heard a rumor that some of the ladies are making a meal tonight."

"Oh! I don't have to cook!" The woman laughed. "They certainly know how to make a woman feel at home." She slipped her shoes back on. "See you kids later."

"Bye mom." Hiccup called over his shoulder.

The house furnishings were modest. A plush couch sat against the wall, with two soft chairs and a round coffee table. On the wall opposite of the entry, there were a pair of doors that seemed to lead to a balcony. Next to that, a dining table with several seats sat across from the open kitchen. The kitchen had a small oven and a microwave, much akin to Astrid's dorm room. It was a nice size, perfect for three people and a leopard to live comfortably.

Her room was small, containing a bunk bed, a small table, and a closet. She dropped her suitcase on the floor and started putting away her clothes. "I am exhausted from that flight. Forget dinner, I'm ready to crash!"

Her boyfriend didn't respond.

"Hiccup?" She poked her head out into the main room. The balcony doors were open, giving view to the wide, mountain side view. The sun would be setting soon, and it cast the pale yellow room into warm pink light. The landscape just seemed to go on for forever.

She found him lounging on a hammock out on the porch, gazing at the view.

"It's a lot like back home. But…bigger. In a way." She assessed.

"The lake view shows nothing. When the mist rolls in, it looks like the map just ends, and that's it. But this…the hills and valleys, the trees and houses…it just seems to go on infinitely."

"Hmmm, I guess I never thought about how big the world really is."

"Yeah."

Silence stretched between them, peacefully carrying the sacred moment.

It was broken when a goat pleaded nearby, in a human-like scream.

The duo devolved into laughter.

Hiccup sat up carefully. "Hey, come and lay with me."

"Isn't that super dangerous? Like, on a hammock."

"I'm a professional hammock balancer. Trust me."

"Okay…" She carefully edged her way onto the hammock, but it promptly flipped and dumped them out on the floor.

"Ow…"

"Professional, huh?" Astrid asked, from where her knee was jammed into his stomach.

"Well, we just need to get in it at the same time."

They both rolled over and clambered up to their feet. Hiccup took one edge and pulled, then rested his knee on it. Astrid did the same. "Kay, on the count of three, we both sit down."

"Got it."

"1…2…3!"

And like poetry, they both fell into the net, being cradled on each side.

"Nice," Astrid appraised, snuggling closer to him, and draping a leg over his. "This is nice."

He wrapped an arm around her, cuddling her to his side. "You said it."

The moment they had lost was back, as they both rested peacefully in each other's presence. Birds chirped as the cool mountain breeze whistled through the trees. The air was fresh.

"Astrid?"

"Hmmm?"

"Do you love me?"

Should could have just said 'yes', as she always did when he asked that question, but instead, she pondered it for a moment. "You know…we haven't been together very long. Just a few months."

"Uh…yeah?"

"In fact, it was a year ago today, that we met."

He raised an eyebrow. "You remember that?"

"Yeah, I saw it in my facebook memories this morning when we were at the airport."

He chuckled.

"But in that time…I've come to see you as something else, not just my boyfriend. I guess I started taking you for granted. It didn't really occur to me that I could lose you."

Hiccup pulled away, and looked down at her, the hammock threatening to tip again. "…you aren't going to lose me…not if I can help it."

She smiled and tugged him to lay down again. "I didn't mean to say it like that. It's just…after a certain point, I stopped seeing you as a person, and started seeing you as an extension of myself that I never knew I was missing."

Hiccup reached up and cupped her cheek, his thumb rubbing an invisible line over her skin.

She continued, "In only six months, we've been through…some really awful stuff."

Once the situation with Scott had been resolved, both had begged the other to let it be and never speak of it again. Still, it was a part of their tainted pasts and it would forever be with them, if not in word, then in meaning.

"But if I had to do any of that…without you? I…I can't even imagine it. You made life worth living. Without you…things would have been so much different."

He swallowed. "I feel the same." He leaned in a placed a soft kiss on the tip of her nose. "I didn't have to go through what you did. I didn't lose my dad, and I wasn't in an abusive relationship. But I had my own struggles, my own doubts. But every time you smiled and laughed with me…they didn't matter. I felt like I belonged beside you, laughing everyday. Because that's all I ever want, is to make you happy."

"That's all I could ever ask for, and to make you happy in return."

"Then…" He leaned closer, snaking his other arm around her. "Will you marry me?"

She starred at him, wide-eyed and confused.

"I…I don't have a ring, or anything, but…gosh I didn't really think this proposal through. I just…needed to say it."

"Yes."

" _Yes?_ "

She nodded, briefly kissing his lips. "I know it won't happen right away, but I can't imagine being with anyone but you. So yes, I will marry you."

In his ecstasy, he crushed her to him, the hammock rocking like a ship in a storm. "Oh Astrid!"

She giggled, struggling to return the embrace, since he had pinned her arms to her sides.

He caught her lips in a deep and tender embrace.

 _Mark 10:9 "Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."_

 _And...done. Thanks for reading! What was your favorite part?_


End file.
